The Story of Charlie Weasley
by mommato2beauties
Summary: Charlie, the second son. Member of the Order of the Phoenix, Dragonkeeper in Romania. But do we really know him? This is his story.
1. Charlie The early years

Disclaimer: The characters and any plot points you recognize belong to JKR, anything else belongs to me. I won't be repeating this with every chapter.

A/N: I mentioned that I wanted to know more about Charlie, and someone suggested I write his biography. (thanks silverbirch) so here goes. I can't promise a chapter a day, but I will try to keep to at least a chapter a week. It may be more than that, or less, depending on what real life throws at me.

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Charlie Weasley's first memory is of meeting his new sibling. He was four years old, and not happy about becoming a big brother. His father had told him what a big responsibility it was, to be a big brother. He wasn't sure he was ready for that, after all, he really was just a little boy. His brother, Bill was already a really good big brother, and Charlie wasn't sure he could be as good.

"Bill, Charlie, come in and meet your new baby brother."

Bill went right into the room, excited to meet the new baby. Charlie was more cautious, walking slowly into the room. He peered into the cradle and saw what he assumed was his baby brother.

"Daddy, I thought you said we were getting a baby brother. All's I see in the cradle is a monkey."

Bill gasped in shock at his brother's words. "You looked the same way, you know." Bill looked at the baby again. "I think he's really cute."

Charlie couldn't believe he had just said that his brother looked like a monkey. His Mummy and Daddy didn't seem like they were angry, but he wasn't sure. He decided the best idea would be to go into his room so that if they decided they WERE angry, he wouldn't be right there. He gathered his favorite picture books and hid under the covers of his bed.

Charlie heard his door open and Bill saying his name very softly.

"You know, Charlie, you didn't say anything wrong. Mummy isn't mad with you. It was kind of funny; she looked at Percy and decided you were right, that he did look like a monkey."

Charlie slowly pulled the covers off his head. He looked at Bill, and then tapped him on the head.

"Tag…you're it…come and get me!" He looked over his shoulder at his older brother, and dashed out into the back garden.

Bill followed him out into the garden where they played until their father came to get them for dinner and bath time. Neither task was typically their Daddy's job, and Charlie thought it might be fun to give him a bit of a hard time.

"I don't eat that Daddy, Mummy always makes me something different when she makes carrots"

"Daddy, that isn't true. Mummy makes Charlie eat the carrots too."

Charlie ate the carrots.

"Daddy, Mummy doesn't make me take a bath."

"Charlie, you've been out in the garden all day…you're filthy, into the tub with you."

"But DADDY…I don't want to take a bath."

Charlie knew he had gone too far when he saw his mother, standing in the hallway, with her hands on her hips. He slowly climbed into the tub, and let his father get him cleaned up. He was hoping that the "scary Mummy face" was all the punishment he was going to get.

He was lucky that Mummy was so tired from the new baby that she didn't come and yell at him. He also decided that the "scary Mummy face" was enough make him listen to Daddy, and be good, like Bill. He settled himself in bed with his stuffed Welsh Dragon. Tomorrow was another day, and Charlie was SURE that he would be a better boy.

Charlie's life changed again, two years later, when two more brothers were born. Charlie really thought his dad was trying to play an April Fool's Day trick on them, when he said there were TWO babies. He didn't believe it, until he saw them both in the cot. He even poked them both, to make sure one wasn't a doll.

The twins, Fred and George, were trouble from the start. Once they started walking and talking, it was almost unbearable. Charlie was, however, very happy that HE wasn't on the receiving end of the "Scary Mummy Face" nearly as often as they were.

It was starting to get crowded at the Burrow. Charlie spent a lot of time outside, or in his room. He wasn't fond of all the noise that the twins made and they were always into something. Percy wasn't so bad, Charlie was barely aware that he was there.

Charlie was eight when his brother Ron was born. By this time, it was old news. One more person in the Burrow, just a little more crowded. Charlie could be found on a broom in the paddock if it was sunny, or, even if it wasn't.

When Ginny was born, a year later, Charlie hoped that there would be no more babies coming, now that his Mum finally had a girl. He wasn't sure how babies came to being, but he hoped that someone else's family would be getting some now. He was pretty sure his house couldn't fit any more people. It was still a year until Bill went off to Hogwarts. He would rather it was the twins going, Bill was his best friend.

"Charlie, can we fly with you? We don't want to be inside with the BABIES!"

Here they came, the tag team twin terrors. All he really wanted to do was fly around the paddock a few times. Just to get away for a minute or two. They were always there.

"No, go find Percy, or Bill…maybe one of them will tell you a story or something. I just want a couple of minutes alone, please….PLEASE?"

Charlie was happy to see them wander back toward the house. It was with just a little bit of trepidation that he wondered what they were going to do to his belongings while he was flying. He decided just to let whatever happened happen. Charlie was sure that no matter what they did, Mum or Dad could put it right. Mum and dad could fix anything.

Mum spent lots of time during the year making sure that Bill, especially, but Charlie and Percy, and the twins to some extent, were learning the things they needed to know when they were off to Hogwarts. Almost every morning found them gathered around the trestle table in the kitchen with schoolbooks. Every afternoon, the older boys could be found either doing chores or flying around the paddock.

When it was finally time for Bill to leave for Hogwarts, the family went to see him off on the train. When they got home, Charlie went into his room and got into bed. He pulled the covers over his head, grabbed his stuffed Welsh dragon, and cried himself to sleep.


	2. Off To Hogwarts

It was finally here. September 1st, 1984. It was finally Charlie's turn to get on the train. Bill promised that he would help him out on the train, and even at the school. Charlie hoped that he would be in Gryffindor. Bill was sorted there, just like their parents. Charlie didn't want to be the first Weasley NOT to get into Gryffindor.

He was packing his trunk. He looked at his bed, and saw his stuffed dragon. He'd had it for as long as he could remember. He wasn't sure if he should pack it or not. Would any of the other boys have stuffed animals? He heard his bedroom door open, and heard Bill clear his throat.

"You know, I brought my blanket with me when I went to Hogwarts. It's packed in my trunk right now, too. You'll see that the other boys bring things too. They may not have them in their beds, but they'll be in their trunks."

"Thanks, Bill. How did you know what I was trying to decide?"

"I had that same look on my face when I was packing the first time. Dad told me it was ok to bring my blanket. You know what? He was right. I was glad I had it."

Charlie grabbed the dragon, and packed it in his trunk. The feeling of relief that washed over him surprised him. He was fully packed, and his Mum had double-checked. His Dad helped him carry it down the stairs.

They arrived at Kings Cross Station, and Bill ran ahead, right through the barrier. Charlie had gone through last year, when they came to see Bill off, but for some reason, this time, he was nervous. He decided it must be because he was pushing his trolley this time.

"Charlie, we don't have time to dawdle…just go at a run…you know how to do it"

"Right Mum, sorry. See you on the other side."

He set off at a slow jog, disappearing behind the barrier of the platform. His Mum and Dad were right behind, each with a twin held firmly by the hand, and each carrying one of the babies. The sight of the train astounded him. It was finally HIS turn. Bill helped him get his trunk settled on the train.

"Do you need me to sit with you, or can I go find my friends? I'll stay if you need me to, but I'm sure that you'll be ok." Charlie could tell that Bill was trying hard to keep the pleading look out of his eyes.

"No, its ok Bill…go find your friends. I'll be fine. I expect that I won't be alone for long."

"Ok, if you're sure. I'll be taking the carriages to the school; you'll be going on the boats. Don't let Hagrid scare you…he's big, but harmless."

Charlie settled into his seat, and took out a book. Three other boys soon joined him. Eric Harris, Kevin Hall, and Joseph Green were also First years. Eric was Muggleborn, and was very nervous about starting school. Charlie was the only one in the compartment who had a sibling at Hogwarts. The other boys peppered him with questions. Charlie felt badly that he couldn't really answer them. Bill wasn't exactly forthcoming with information about the school. He said it was because he wanted Charlie to experience it the way he did, with no preconceived notions, whatever THAT meant.

Bill stopped by his compartment, and told Charlie to get changed. Not long after that, the train came to a stop. Charlie climbed off the train and looked around.

"Firs' Years…this way…Firs' Years…On to the boats."

Charlie made his way over to the voice, and was startled by the sheer size of the man who was calling them over.

"Oi…you must be Charlie Weasley. Yer brother said y'ed be startin' this year. Climb on the boat then, gotta get yer up to the castle."

They hadn't gone far when a collective gasp rose from the group of First Years. There was a reason that the First Year students were brought to the castle by boat. The image of the castle, rising behind the lake was breathtaking, and, quite frankly, magical.

Hagrid shepherded them into the enormous Entrance Hall, where an intimidating looking Witch dressed in Tartan plaid met them. Charlie was sure that this was Professor McGonagall, the Transfiguration professor. She told them to smarten up, and disappeared behind a set of enormous doors. Charlie looked around at his fellow first year students. A girl with a heart shaped face and bright pink hair caught his eye. When he looked back, though, her hair was the exact shade as his. Charlie had to figure out what was going on with that. By the time he got to her side, her hair was pink again.

"Hi, my name is Charlie…what's yours?"

"Wotcher, Charlie…my name is Tonks."

"Tonks? Really? That's a bit of a funny name." Charlie blushed brightly, as he realized that wasn't a really kind thing to say.

"Tonks is my Surname, I won't tell you my given name, my parents were cruel, let me tell ya."

"Tonks it is. Look, I think she's ready for us to go in. What house do you think you might be in? My older brother is in Gryffindor, so were my parents. I'll probably go there; at least I hope I do."

"My whole family has been in Slytherin, except for my dad, and one cousin we don't talk about. My dad was in Hufflepuff, so I hope I go there. My Mum doesn't speak to her family; I don't think she would be too keen on me being in Slytherin."

"I guess it's all up to whatever decides these things." He decided that the red hair must have been a trick of the light, or he was seeing things, or something.

The huge doors opened, and again, the first year students gasped at the sight. The Great Hall was filled with four tables, hundreds of students. At one end of the hall, there was a stool. Sitting on the stool was a ragged looking hat. They waited while the hat sang a little song, then they each took their turn putting it on. The Muggleborn boy he sat with on the train, Eric, was sorted into Gryffindor. The other two were sorted into Ravenclaw. Tonks, he found out, was called Nymphadora, and she was sorted into Hufflepuff.

Finally, it was Charlie's turn. He made his way up to the stool, and sat down. He shoved the hat on his head. He really hoped it wouldn't take long. He was the last person to be sorted, and he could only imagine that everyone was getting hungry. He didn't want to be the reason they were help up from their meal.

He didn't need to worry. The hat was barely on his head when it yelled out "GRYFFINDOR!"

Charlie trotted passed his big brother, and sat with his new friend. He saw his brother smile at him, and give him a thumbs up. Charlie knew he would have been welcome to sit with Bill and his friends, but Bill was happy that Charlie had found a friend to sit with.

After the Feast, they were led to Gryffindor Tower by their Prefects, told the password, and then led to their dormitory. Charlie was happy to see his trunk sitting at the foot of one of the beds. He hastily unpacked some of his belongings, and got ready for bed. He was exhausted, and well aware that classes started in the morning. He put his hand on his dragon, and looked around. Charlie was brave, but not brave enough to try sleeping in a brand new place, without his Mum and Dad, without his dragon. He grabbed it, and climbed into bed.

Charlie woke the next morning to the sounds of his dorm mates getting ready for breakfast. He hastily pulled on his uniform and robes. He grabbed his rucksack and followed his house down to the Great Hall. He was a bit worried that he would get lost on his way to his classes. He found Eric and sat down next to him.

"Are you ready for classes?" Charlie began filling his plate with eggs, sausage and baked beans. He passed over the coffee, and filled a goblet with pumpkin juice.

"Mate, I'm petrified. I've never done magic on purpose before. I never knew what was happening before was magic. It all just seemed weird to me."

"Try living in the house with six underage wizards and an underage witch. The accidental magic in my house is out of control."

Professor McGonagall walked the length of the Gryffindor table handing out timetables. Charlie and Eric looked them over carefully.

"We've got Herbology first, with the Hufflepuffs. Then Transfiguration. After lunch, we've got Defense against the Dark Arts. Hopefully it won't be too bad."

"Herbology, that can't be too bad…its plants. How scary can plants be."

Charlie was pleased to see Tonks in Herbology. He and Eric set up at a table next to Tonks and her roommate, Peyton Aggat. Tonks' hair was still a bright pink. Charlie couldn't imagine a mother allowing her daughter to make her hair that color. Not to mention, on the first day, they hadn't learned glamour charms yet.

"How do you make your hair that color? I'd bet my Mum would go spare if my baby sister tried to do that, when she was older."

"Oh, the pink?" She grinned, "Is this better?" She screwed up her face in concentration. When she relaxed, her hair was the same color as Charlie's.

"How do you DO that?

"I'm a Metamorphmagus…I can change my appearance at will. Cool, isn't it?"

"Wicked"

They turned their attention to the class, and worked in silence for the remainder of the class. Charlie and Eric quickly cleaned up before hurrying to Transfiguration. They could tell that this class was going to be challenging.

They finished their day with Defense Against the Dark Arts class. They headed to Gryffindor tower and joined their classmates to do their homework. When they had finished as best they could, they tried to teach Eric how to play Exploding Snap. He explained that it was similar to a Muggle game, but that when playing the Muggle way, the cards didn't explode. The prefects came around and sent the First year students to bed.

It was one of the best days of Charlie's life, and he couldn't wait to do it again the next day.


	3. Potions and Flying and Detentions, Oh My

Charlie woke the next morning, and again followed his older housemates to breakfast. He was sure that he would learn the castle, but today, he was still afraid he was going to get lost. He joined his Eric and his other dorm mates, Donnelly Callaghan, Andrew Rudder and Barrack Pullman. Like Tonks, Barrack wasn't fond of his given name, and had asked them all to call him Barry.

Their timetables showed that they were due to go to Double Potions, with the Slytherins. After lunch was History of Magic and Charms. Bill had told Charlie about Professor Snape, the Potions Master. Charlie was apprehensive, because Bill wasn't really one to exaggerate. He warned his friends that Professor Snape might be a bit hard on them, because they were Gryffindors.

"That's not fair." Emmalina Blakemore was one of the girls in Charlie's year. "He shouldn't be like that. Teachers are supposed to be impartial."

"Well, Bill says that he's a bit prejudiced when it comes to Gryffindors. Hopefully he was exaggerating."

It wasn't long into class that Charlie found out that Bill had not been exaggerating. Points were given to the Slytherin students merely for breathing correctly, while they were deducted from Gryffindor for all manner of 'offences' such as not volunteering answers, or for answering incorrectly when called on.

"Tell me, Miss Fickling, what is a bezoar used for?"

"I'm sorry, Sir, I'm Muggleborn, and I don't know the answer."

"The answer could be found in your Potions textbook, had you been bothered to read it, prior to entering the castle. That's five points from Gryffindor for being unprepared." Charlie felt bad for Lilac. He was overwhelmed, and he had grown up in a magical family. He was sure he would have been totally flabbergasted if he hadn't even known magic existed.

A different story, however, was told when a Slytherin was asked a question.

"Miss Vagg, Please tell me one ingredient of the potion used to revive someone who has been petrified."

"I didn't see that in any of my books, Professor Snape. I don't know the answer."

"Ten points to Slytherin for honesty. We won't be covering Mandrake Restorative Potions, as they are NEWT level potions."

"Sir, that isn't fair." Bill hadn't told Charlie not to speak out in class.

"Fair, Mr. Weasley? Is it fair that I am forced to teach scores of children who are barely proficient at spelling their own names? Detention for your cheek. See me after class"

Professor Snape informed Charlie that he would be serving detention with Hagrid later that evening. Charlie rushed to eat his lunch, and wrote a letter to his Mum, explaining about his detention, and the reason he received it. He didn't think his parents would be angry with him for standing up for what was right.

A ghost taught History of Magic. That was really the only interesting thing about the class. It was apparent that the curriculum hadn't changed since Professor Binns was alive. The ten Gryffindor students quickly worked out a system of note sharing, so that at any given class, only one of them was taking notes. The remainder of them either worked on homework for other classes, or used the time to nap. Before tests, they would all study together.

It was evident that Charms was the light shining at the end of the tunnel on these days. Charlie looked forward to the class, and the quirky professor. Professor Flitwick was small and elf-like, and never seemed to get upset of flustered, no matter what happened to him or his class. Professor Flitwick was showing them Banishing and Summoning charms, and promised that they would be trying them in the next class.

They headed down to dinner. Charlie had to eat quickly, because he was serving his detention with Hagrid. Bill had explained that Hagrid was a half-giant, but that he was as gentle as could be. Charlie wasn't too worried about his detention. He was more worried that he would have a poor reputation with Professor Snape and the other professors.

"Charlie Weasley, yer second day of school, and a'ready yeh've got detention. I don't think yer folks'll be too pleased with THAT."

"Mr. Hagrid, sir, it really wasn't my fault…Professor Snape deducted points from Gryffindor because a Muggleborn student didn't know an answer, and gave points to the Slytherins, even though they didn't know an answer, because they were 'honest' whatever THAT'S supposed to mean. I said it wasn't fair"

"Firs' off, it's just Hagrid, second, yeh'll do well to learn that you never tell Professor Snape, or any other teacher fer that matter, that they're not fair. It's sure ta get yeh detention."

"I'll keep that in mind, Hagrid, thanks."

"A'right, we've got some work to do in the Forest. Yeh'll be with me, so it's safe. Come on, follow me."

Charlie and Hagrid worked together in the forest, and began talking. Charlie was pleased to find out that Hagrid shared his interest in Magical Creatures. He laughed when Hagrid said he wanted to have a pet dragon, until he realized that Hagrid wasn't exactly joking.

"Yeh'll be wanting to take Care of Magical Creatures in yer third year. Before that, yeh can come and visit me any time. I can always use a little help out here."

"I'll look forward to it"

They returned to the castle together, and Charlie headed back to Gryffindor Tower. He was anxious to finish up his homework and get to bed. All of his friends, clamouring to find out about detention, greeted him.

"What did you do? Was Hagrid scary? He seemed so scary when we went on the boats."

"No, Hagrid isn't scary at all. We went into the Forbidden Forest. That was scarier than Hagrid."

Charlie took a minute to look at the message board on the wall. A poster caught his attention.

"Hey, did everyone see Flying starts tomorrow. I can't wait to get back on a broom. I didn't realize I was going to miss it so much. I used to fly at home, when I needed to get away from my terrible twin brothers."

Eric looked up with such a fearful face that Charlie couldn't help but laugh.

"Don't laugh, mate. We're going to fly, on broomsticks. How in Merlin's name are we going to sit on a broomstick?" Again, Charlie laughed. Eric was such a Muggle about some things, but had completely fallen in with Wizard slang.

"Mate, don't worry, there are cushioning charms. You'll feel like you're sitting on a sofa pillow."

"What ever you say, mate. Seems a bit mad to me. What's wrong with walking, or taking the Underground?"

That statement caused riotous laughter throughout the Common Room.

Flying was taught with the Slytherins. Charlie didn't understand why they were always paired with a House who, quite frankly, hated them. He didn't expect any trouble, though. They practiced calling their brooms up. Some of the students from Wizarding families were already proficient at flying, but the Muggleborns obviously weren't. Charlie was a bit more proficient than most, but that was only because getting up on a broom had been his only escape when the twins were really small. Flying was definitely a class he would be looking forward to each week.

Potions wasn't even too bad, once Charlie learned not to speak against Professor Snape. He was actually quite good at the subject, and therefore escaped some of Professor Snape's scorn. His classmates were sure to read ahead of the next day's lesson, in order to answer any questions that might be thrown at him. It wasn't a guarantee that they wouldn't lose points. There were days that points were deducted for breathing too loudly, it seemed. Charlie still believed it to be unfair, but didn't speak out. He didn't think his mum would be as understanding of a second detention for talking out of turn.

The days and weeks passed quickly for the rest of the term. Charlie kept his word to Hagrid, and went to the gamekeeper's hut at least once a week. Hagrid showed him all manner of creatures that lived on the grounds of Hogwarts. Charlie could barely wait to take Care of Magical Creatures.

The day before it was time to board the Hogwarts Express, their end of term marks were posted. He was more than pleased by the 'O's' in Charms and Transfiguration and the 'E's' in History of Magic and Herbology. He wasn't as pleased with the 'A' in Potions, but he was determined to bring that up to an 'E' next term. He spent the last night of term relaxing in the Common Room with his friends.


	4. And The First Year Passes By

A/N: Thank you for all the reviews so far. I've gotten some requests to make the chapter longer, and since I don't typically put tons of detail into my writing, it's hard. Please let me know how I did. If I've overdone it, let me know. Thanks.

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Charlie boarded the train with Eric, and they quickly made their way to the compartment where Tonks and Peyton were already sitting. Tonks had arranged her hair in long plaits, one red and one green, in honour of the holiday.

"Eric, have you ever played Gob Stones?" Tonks had a twinkle in her eye. She never passed up an opportunity to point out just how Muggle Eric really was. "It's JUST like Muggle marbles"

"Are you sure it's JUST like marbles. I've never seen anything in the Wizarding World that is JUST like its Muggle equivalent. I'll try it though…how bad can it be."

"Are you SURE, I'm the best Gob Stone player in our year, maybe even in school!"

"I'll share my set for now." Charlie tossed a small box to Eric.

They set up the game, and Charlie and Peyton sat back to watch the fun. They both collapsed in giggles when the first gob stone exploded in Eric's face. He sat up and grabbed the edge of Tonks' robe to wipe off his face.

"Yep, JUST like Muggle marbles. I am going to get you one of these days, Tonks."

"Oh, Eric, you can try…you can try. You forget that I have an advantage. My dad's a Muggleborn; I know as much about Muggle things as I do about Wizard things."

"Well, let's finish the game, then. I still think I can beat you."

Tonks wasn't kidding when she said she was good. She beat Eric soundly, and he had to excuse himself to clean up and change. Tonks cleaned up the game, and went to clean herself up. She was also going to get out of her uniform. Charlie and Peyton waited until their friends came back, and then they hurried off to change.

When they arrived at Kings Cross Station, Charlie hurried off the train to meet his family. He was especially happy to see the twins. He never thought he would miss their crazy antics, but he did. He patted Ron on the head, and gathered his baby sister in his arms and smothered her with kisses.

Charlie spent the next few hours chattering about Hogwarts. Percy was very interested, because he would be going in three years. Percy was very bookish, and was very concerned with preparing himself as much as he could. Fred and George were interested in hearing about the secrets of the castle. Bill had told them about secret passageways, and they wanted to know if Charlie had found any.

"I'm still getting used to making my way to the Great Hall without getting lost. I haven't had TIME to find any secret passageways."

"Would you tell us…?"

"…If you did?"

Charlie had forgotten that neither twin ever finished a sentence. They always allowed the other to finish it for them.

"If I find any secret passages, I'll be sure to tell you all about them."

He and Bill spent a good amount of their break doing their homework. Charlie had rolls of parchment due in all his classes. Bill was always willing to help him out, though. Charlie's Mum was very happy with her sons' work ethic. Charlie really just wanted to be done with homework, so that he would have the rest of his holiday to relax, and play.

Charlie was woken up on Christmas Morning by Bill running into his room at break neck speed.

"Presents, Charlie…PRESENTS…go on, open yours."

Charlie ripped the paper off of a midnight blue jumper.

"Oh, look…it's a jumper…what a surprise."

Charlie meant no disrespect. It was a joke that their dad had started after catching his mum knitting his jumper a week before Christmas, before Charlie was even born. Every year it was the same thing. Everyone opened their jumper and remarked at the surprise.

Charlie opened the rest of his presents and found that Bill had gotten him quills and ink for school. Percy had gotten him a book about Quidditch, and the twins had somehow talked Dad, Charlie was sure, into getting him several items from Zonko's. He couldn't wait to try the Hiccough Sweets on his friends.

Charlie and Bill went down to breakfast and saw Percy, Fred and George sitting at the table, wearing their jumper. Fred and George's sported the first letter of their names. Charlie didn't think this would help anyone tell them apart. Right now, he was pretty sure that Fred was wearing the 'G' jumper, while George donned the 'F' jumper.

"Charlie, Bill?" His Mum looked a little frazzled. "Will you take the twins and do something, anything with them while I clean up."

"All right Mum. Can we take them for a fly? With two of us, we should be able to handle them."

"Charlie, I don't care, just get them out of my hair, please! We can't leave for Auntie Muriel's until I've done the washing up."

The eldest boys took the twins out to the paddock for a quick fly. Charlie knew that the twins were capable of flying on their own broomstick, but Charlie felt more comfortable with George on the broomstick with him. It seemed Bill felt the same way, because Fred was also sitting right in front of Bill. They each took about ten turns around the paddock. They set back on the ground, and brought the twins back into the house.

"Bill, we should get them cleaned up, Mum will be busy getting the small ones ready to go."

"Right, ok…into the tub, you twin terrors."

The two boys made short work of the bath, and before long, Fred and George were clean, dressed and looking presentable. Charlie and Bill hurried to get themselves ready, as well. They herded the twins down into the parlour, so they could floo to Auntie Muriel's house.

Charlie didn't like going to Auntie Muriel's house. She was harsh and judgmental, and often mean. She kept expensive things, and never let an opportunity to show them off pass. Charlie hoped that dinner wouldn't last too long, and that they would be back to the Burrow soon. The Burrow might be small and crowded, but it was home. He was relieved when the visit was over, and he was finally home.

In the remaining week of the holiday, Charlie was determined to spend time with all his younger siblings. He really HAD missed them, and realized how much they had changed while he was away at school. Percy was easy. He just needed to talk to him about Hogwarts, and Percy was entranced for hours. Ron and Ginny just wanted to play. The twins, however, were harder to entertain. One wouldn't do anything without the other, so playing with the twins was a package deal. Charlie decided just to let them decide what to do, and he would play along.

"Charlie…make sure you clean your room."

"Charlie, dear…please get Ronnie his lunch."

"Charlie, watch your sister."

Charlie thought it was a bit weird, that they were really on their own at school, and being under Mum's thumb on holiday was a bit stifling. Of course, there were rules at school, and they had to answer to the professors and the prefects, but it was nothing like being at home.

The week passed quickly, and before Charlie knew it, he was back in the train compartment with his friends. Peyton had received a set of Wizard Chess for Christmas, and they delighted in shocking Eric with the difference between Muggle Chess and Wizard Chess. The first time Charlie took one of Eric's pawns, the poor boy jumped out of his seat.

"Did you really think that the pieces would just let you take them off the board? Muggles really are so boring" Charlie knew that Eric agreed with him, so he didn't feel badly about saying it.

"I just didn't know it would be so VIOLENT….so, you can only play it one time, and the set is no good?"

That set Tonks off in a fit of hysterical giggles. "That would be a bit daft, wouldn't it? Only being able to play one time. No, they repair themselves when the game's done. It will take time for the set to trust any of us, though, it's brand new."

"To TRUST us?" Eric rolled his eyes. "But, I'm the player; don't the pieces have to do what I say?"

"Well, they do, but if they don't think it's a good move, they'll likely yell at you." As if to illustrate Tonks' point, Charlie's pieces started yelling at him for a move that they didn't agree with.

"Now, if Charlie wins the game, the pieces will trust him a bit more, and will shout at him less."

They finished their game, and spent the rest of the ride watching Tonks metamorph herself into different animals. Bill stopped in when he heard the riotous laughter coming from his brother's compartment. He reminded them to change, because the train would be in Hogsmeade soon. Before the train pulled into the station, Charlie tossed a small box to Eric. "Merry Christmas, mate. They aren't new, but I figured you'd like your own set of Gob Stones."

"Thanks, mate…I don't have anything for you, though."

"No worries, like I said, they were a set we had laying around the house. Mum said I could give them to you."

They arrived back at school and went right to their dorms, anxious to catch up with their friends who had stayed at the castle.

"Nice jumper, Weasley." Barry greeted his friend with a hearty handshake.

"Thanks. I'm sure it's better than anything you got for Christmas." Teasing among the boys was good-natured.

The five boys compared notes on their holiday and the presents they received. Charlie was well aware that his family didn't have the wealth to bestow fancy presents upon them. He was also aware that each jumper was made with love. Any material gifts were a bonus to the love that he received.

The next day found Charlie back to classes. Potions was still a double class with the Slytherins. A morning in the Dungeons with Professor Snape was enough to make anyone dread the day. Charlie's only redeeming feature to Professor Snape was that he was a dab hand at Potions. Any Gryffindor that didn't excel, and even some that did, were subject to ridicule at the hand of the Potions Master. They were beginning work on Forgetfulness Potions, which they would be tested on at the end of the year.

History of Magic was focused on the various Goblin Wars. It seemed to Charlie that the Goblin's were always warring about something. He wasn't sure he would be able to tell the wars apart, when it came exam time. The Gryffindor students were still sharing the note taking responsibilities. It may not have been the most studious, but they never claimed to be Ravenclaws, and it at least guaranteed that they all had the notes. Professor Binns was never the wiser, as on and on he droned.

Charms was again one of the highlights of the week. Professor Flitwick was teaching them to charm different items to do unusual things. He hinted that they may be asked to make fruit tap-dance, or do the flashing paint charm in their final. Charlie wasn't worried about the Charms exam, because he was an able student at Charms. Transfiguration was another story. Charlie did well enough, but it was a struggle. He often had extra homework practice in order to make what they learned in class work the way they were supposed to. He knew that Tonks was quite talented at Transfiguration. She would probably help him out.

They were also working hard in Herbology and Defence Against the Dark Arts. Professor Sprout informed them that their exams would have no practical component, and as such, Charlie knew he would need to keep up on his reading and essays. Defence Against the Dark Arts focused on dark creatures in first year, though they did learn simple shield spells.

Many weekends, Charlie headed down to Hagrid's hut, where he learned quite a bit about the various creatures in the Forbidden Forest. In fact, his friends joked that should Charlie need to serve detention again, the Professors wouldn't be served well to send him down to Hagrid. He had learned about the Thestrals and had met the Centaurs. There were places in the Forest that Hagrid allowed Charlie to go alone, but he was also very clear that there were areas where Charlie was never to venture.

Exams came, and went. Charlie had done well, and knew his mother would be proud of him. He had finished packing his trunk, and was just waiting for Eric to finish before going down to breakfast. He heard some of the boys mumbling about the food being far better here than at home. Charlie didn't agree with that statement at all. His Mum's cooking was the best he had ever eaten, better than anything any house elf could make. He snapped his trunk shut and went down to breakfast for the last time of his first year.

Charlie and Eric got on the train together, and found their compartment quickly. Tonks and Peyton were already there, and had gotten out the Exploding Snap cards. They chatted a bit about their final tests before Peyton said that she was really quite done thinking about school, and opened her copy of Young Witch Weekly. Charlie, Eric and Tonks decided to attempt building a card house, without it exploding.

"All summer, with no magic. I think that's very unfair. I'm going to forget everything I've learned this year." Sometimes, Charlie thought Eric worried too much.

Tonks was nodding her agreement, though. "I know Professor Flitwick says 'as long as we know the theory, the magic just happens naturally' but I'm not sure I believe it." She had made her face into a perfect replica of their Charms professor. They all laughed at her poorly done voice imitation.

"I just think it's going to be long summer, being with our parents again. We've really been on our own all year, now we have to make sure to eat our veggies and clean our rooms. I don't expect MY mum will be ok with me saying 'no one makes me eat my carrots at SCHOOL.' No, I don't see that going over well at ALL. Tell me, do all mums have the 'Scary Mum Face' that you get when you've done something wrong?"

Charlie's companions all nodded their agreement, and laughed at his description. They felt a lurch as the train came to a stop at Kings Cross. They finished gathering their things and got off the train. They all waved goodbye, joined their families, and headed home.


	5. The Summer After First Year

The first thing Charlie noticed when he got to the Burrow was how small it was. It was comforting and familiar. Charlie had never quite felt comfortable with the sheer size of the Castle, let alone the trick stair, the hidden doors and the shortcuts. At home, he knew where everything was, and most often, he knew where everyone was. Oh, he still thought the Burrow was too crowded, and he was sure that he would need to escape sometimes, but right now, he was home…and he was happy.

The next thing he noticed was how much his younger siblings had changed. Percy was now almost nine. Charlie didn't think he was getting more interesting as he got older. Percy was interested in rules and regulations. He wanted to know about earning and losing House Points.

"I want to be prepared, I'm GOING to be a Prefect, and if I'm LUCKY…I'll even be Head Boy"

"That's great Perce, aim big. I'll bet you could be Minister of Magic someday, if you're really lucky." Charlie turned quickly and luckily, made out of the room before the fit of giggles overtook him.

Fred and George had their birthday while Charlie was at school. They were seven now, and had each gotten a used broomstick for their birthday. Charlie really was looking forward to going flying with them. He hoped to earn a place on the Gryffindor House Quidditch team, and really could use all the practice he could get.

Ron had turned five, and was really beginning to get interesting. He was developing quite a personality. He was funny, like the twins, but without someone to play off of, his humour was more subtle. Charlie could tell already, that he was going to enjoy spending time with his baby brother.

Ginny was very much the baby of the family, and Charlie could see that she was already annoyed with all the attention. She was always trying to keep up with the boys, and wouldn't let herself be trampled. At three and a half, she was already showing signs of accidental magic, because of her many temper tantrums.

The family sat down to a quick supper of sandwiches. It was late, and everyone was tired. Charlie finished his meal quickly, and excused himself. He brought his trunk to his room and unpacked it. He settled his dragon on his pillow. He could almost see it smiling at being back home. Charlie knew the feeling. He changed into pyjamas and settled himself into bed. Mum and Dad came in to say goodnight. He heard his siblings calling out their goodnights to each other, and his voice joined the chorus. He blew out the candle by his bed, and rolled over, quickly falling asleep.

The sun woke him the next morning. He pulled his pillow over his head and tried to get back to sleep, but the twins were causing a ruckus about something, and Charlie decided that he was done sleeping for the day. He pulled on some clothes and headed to the kitchen. His mum had laid out a plate of toast with a warming charm. He grabbed a slice, and walked into the lounge.

"Morning, Gin Gin…I missed you like crazy when I was at school!" Charlie got down on the floor to see what she was doing.

"Hi Charlie…I missed you too. Wanna play?"

She peered over his shoulder, and narrowed her eyes. He turned his head and saw Fred and George coming into the room. Charlie decided to play referee. He didn't really want to have to clean up any messes that the twins made, or caused Ginny to make.

"Fred, George…be nice. Leave Gin Gin alone. She's not doing anything to you."

"Aw, Charlie…we weren't going to do anything…"

"…We just wanted to play."

Charlie had a feeling that the twins picked on Ginny a lot. He settled down with Ginny and picked up a block. He set about building towers of blocks, while Ginny knocked them down, each time with a shriek of glee. This game lasted about ten minutes before Ginny got bored and wandered away. Charlie cleaned up the blocks.

Charlie wanted to get back on his broom, and since he felt a little badly about spoiling their fun with Ginny, he invited the twins to join him. He grabbed his broom and flew, low and fast, to the paddock. Charlie's dad had charmed the twins' brooms, so they couldn't go at unsafe speeds, much to their dismay. Charlie waited for them on the ground, and they all kicked off into the air together.

"Throw apples at me, I want to practice catching the snitch. I'm going to be on the House team next year"

"You want us to throw apples AT you? Really?"

"Well, TO me. Don't try to take my head off or anything."

Charlie took to the air, and the twins started throwing apples at him. He darted around the pitch, trying to catch them. The twins got bored of throwing apples to Charlie, so they started trying to hit him. Charlie landed his broom, and decided that if he couldn't beat them, he should join them, and started pelting them with apples too. He was amazed at how they dodged the apples, and even how they deflected them with their hands.

"You two look like Beaters over there. I'll bet you could take on a set of Bludgers with no problem."

"Us…Beaters…"

"…do you really think so?"

"Absolutely, can you find some sticks you can use as bats…I'll help you practice, if you want."

They spent the rest of the morning on broomsticks, Charlie throwing apples at the twins, and the twins tossing apples TO Charlie. Charlie was honestly amazed at how well the twins flew together, though he realized he shouldn't be. He was glad, too, that he had found something that they could do together. It didn't seem like any time had passed, when they heard Mum's voice carry over the yard, calling them in for lunch.

Charlie helped his mum with the washing up. It was relatively quiet in the kitchen, and he was glad to get the chance to chat with Mum. He could hear the noise of the other children playing. He wasn't quiet sure how Mum and Dad handled all the noise. Even in the dorm, with four other boys, it wasn't loud. The Common Room could get loud, but there were always places to escape to, where it was quiet. There weren't really any places at The Burrow where you could escape the noise.

"Charlie…can you take me flying?" Ron was at the door, talking very quietly.

Charlie looked at his mum with the question in his eyes. "If he rides with me, can I please bring him up? I won't go fast at all."

"I don't see why not, just be careful…he's only five."

"Mum, I'm always careful. I'll go low and slow. Ronnie will hold on tight too. Won't you?" He looked over his shoulder at Ron, "Come on, then…let's get up in the air."

Charlie got Ron set on the broom, and then kicked off. He kept the broom low to the ground, and went very slow. Every now and again, Ron would look back over his shoulder, a look of sheer glee on his face. They took a few rounds of the paddock before heading back to the house. Charlie had been on his broom all day, and was ready to take a bit of a break. He climbed the stairs to the bathroom and cleaned up.

There was a bit of time before supper, and Charlie wanted to get an early start on his homework. He knew Bill would probably tease him, if last summer was any indication, Bill would try to wait until the last minute to get his homework started. Charlie really just wanted to get it finished, so he wouldn't have to worry about it again. He wasn't a procrastinator, preferring to get work done when it was assigned. He got his homework out of his trunk, and started back toward the kitchen. He stopped and went back, after realizing that his trunk wasn't as neat as he had left it. It looked as though someone had been rummaging through it. He took a quick look to see if anything was missing. He felt his stomach drop to the floor when he realized his wand wasn't in his trunk where he had left it.

"MUM….MUM….Where ARE you?" Charlie bolted down the stairs toward the garden, where he had last seen his mother.

"Charlie, I'm right here, what's WRONG?" Mrs. Weasley had her hand pressed to her chest; Charlie's hollering had startled her.

"IwenttogetmyhomeworkandsomeonewasinmytrunkandmywandisGONE"

"Charlie, take a deep breath, and calm down…it can't be as bad as all that."

Charlie took several very deliberate breaths, and felt himself calm down a bit.

"I went to get my homework, and it looked like someone was in my trunk. I checked it out, and MUM, my wand…it's GONE!"

"I'm sure it's not gone, perhaps it rolled out onto the floor, or it's stuck in the lining. Let's go look together." She waved her wand, and the clean laundry began hanging itself, and followed Charlie up to his room.

They looked all over the floor, and under Charlie's bed. They unpacked Charlie's trunk, and looked in all the corners, and checking the lining out thoroughly. When they didn't find it, Mrs. Weasley put everything back in the trunk.

"Did you leave it at school? I'm sure we can owl Professor McGonagall and ask her to check the dormitory."

"No, Mum…I had it when I unpacked my trunk. I'm SURE I brought it home."

Charlie was beginning to panic a bit, and Mrs. Weasley was looking concerned as well. Charlie's panic was based on the fear of getting in trouble. Mrs. Weasley was concerned that Ginny or Ron had gotten a hold of the wand, and would hurt someone. Worse yet, was the fear that the twins had gotten a hold of it. They did that with Bill's wand the summer before, and turned Ron's teddy bear into a spider.

"FRED, GEORGE…COME HERE THIS INSTANT!"

Charlie couldn't help being glad he wasn't on the receiving end of the verbal thrashing that was to come. The twins came running into the room, sliding to a stop in front of their mother. She rounded on them, and Charlie noticed they had the good sense to look scared. They were all expecting their mum to yell, so the quiet voice they heard was very disconcerting.

"Charlie's wand isn't where he left it; do you two know where it might be?"

"Nope, Mum…not a clue…"

"…He should learn to be more careful."

They turned around and headed for the door.

"STOP!"

This was the Mum they were used to. Charlie knew that if he looked up, he would see the 'scary Mum face' but he wasn't lifting his eyes from the knothole he was looking at on the floor. The twins stopped in their tracks and turned slowly. Charlie raised his eyes slightly. The twins seemed to be silently debating something.

"I want an answer NOW!" Mum wasn't going to let this one go. Charlie had never held out against the scary Mum face, and he wasn't sure how the twins actually did it.

"I'll just start setting restrictions, and keep adding until someone hands me the wand."

More looks passed between the twins.

"No brooms, for at least two weeks. At the end of two weeks, I'll decide if you can have them back."

"No BROOMS…MUM…"

"….NOT fair!"

Charlie would have liked to go somewhere, anywhere else. Unfortunately, this exchange was taking place in his bedroom, and the twins were blocking the door. It seemed to take forever, with more restrictions being piled on, before the twins returned his wand. Unless his mum changed her mind, which wasn't very likely, he wouldn't be flying with the twins for a good portion of the summer. In fact, due to the 'separation restriction' Mum had imposed, the twins wouldn't even be allowed to SEE each other for two weeks.

With his wand secured where it belonged in his trunk, Charlie was able to get a start on his Potions homework. He settled at the trestle table in the kitchen with his Potions text, ink, quills and parchment spread around him. He ignored Bill's sniggers as he wandered in and out of the kitchen. He had already decided that he would work on his homework every day, so he could be finished early, leaving himself the whole summer to play.

"Name the ingredients of Swelling Solution, and discuss why these are used." Charlie often found that reading his assignments aloud allowed his brain to wrap around the questions. He needed at least two feet of parchment to complete the assignment. He opened his Magical Draughts and Potions text and began looking for the information he needed. Charlie worked for quite a while before he felt like he had made a good start of his homework. Mum had come into the kitchen, and Charlie knew it was either get out now, or help mum. He decided to get out while the getting was good. He found Bill in the lounge, and they sat down to play chess.

After supper, Charlie decided to spend some time with George, who was really feeling the loss of his playmate. His mum had made a schedule of when each twin was allowed to be out of the bedroom. They only time they were allowed contact for two weeks was meals and bedtime. Charlie thought that separating them like this was a little cruel; however, he would never say that to his mum. It didn't last long, though, because the sun had barely set, and George was making a big show about how tired he was, and said he was off to bed. Charlie got a book and also retired to his room. Before long, he was asleep.

His summer was spent flying and practicing Quidditch. He flew with Ron a lot. He loved the look of sheer glee when Ron was on a broomstick. He even let Ron do the steering sometimes. Charlie didn't think it would be long before Ron would be able to handle a broom on his own. He played with Ginny out in the garden. The children all went down to the lake to swim, once the twins were allowed to see each other again. The older boys helped around the house, usually by degnoming the garden. The summer seemed to be flying by.

"Mum…can I invite a friend over? I'd love for Tonks to come over. Maybe she could bring her broom and we could fly around the paddock. Please?"

"I don't see why not…how about the end of the week, send an owl and ask her by for Friday."

Charlie hurried to get his parchment and quill and wrote out the invitation. He sent it off with Errol, and hoped that the old owl would come back soon with the reply. Just about half the afternoon went by, and Charlie saw Errol coming back to the house. He grabbed the letter as soon as the owl came to perch. Charlie gave him some owl treats, and then went into the lounge to read the letter.

"So, Charlie, what does your friend say? Is she coming?"

"She said she'll come by floo on Friday. Her mum will come with her. I think you know Mrs. Tonks, though, at least know of her. Tonks says that her mum was in Slytherin, but her dad was a Hufflepuff."

"I knew Andromeda Black, well Tonks now. She was kinder than most Slytherins. Nothing like her sisters."

Charlie went out to the back garden and started to degnome. Garden gnomes weren't the smartest creatures. If they thought degnoming was going on, they all came out of their holes to see what the commotion was. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Bill come out to the garden. It looked like he was singing.

"Charlie's got a girlfriend"

"She's NOT my girlfriend….she's just my friend""La…lala…la la…la Charlie's got a girlfriend."

"I'd stop if I was you, or Fred and George will find out about Millie Atwater in the third floor broom closet last year. If Fred and George know…pretty soon EVERYONE will know."

"Right…nothing wrong with having a friend who's a girl, nothing at all."

Charlie laughed at the way Bill slinked into the house. What Charlie found even funnier was that he hadn't known anything about Millie Atwater, other than that his brother spent a lot of time with her. Now he had proof, and leverage.

Friday came, and Charlie was waiting anxiously in the lounge, when the fireplace glowed green. Moments later, Mrs. Tonks stepped gracefully out of the fireplace. She had barely taken three steps when the fireplace glowed again, and a pink haired girl crashed and rolled onto the hearthrug. Charlie reached out his hand and helped Tonks up. She grinned at him as she dusted herself off.

"Wotcher, Charlie…this is my Mum, Andromeda Tonks."Charlie stuck out his hand to shake hers. "Pleasure to meet you, Mrs. Tonks."

"The pleasure is all mine." She turned to Mrs. Weasley. "Shall I come to collect Nymphadora, or will I just expect her home?"

"If you'd like, she can just use the floo, shall I send her home after tea?"

"That would be fine." She gave Tonks an air kiss on each cheek. "I'll see you later, darling. Please remember your manners."

"Yes, Mum. I'll see you later."

Before taking her leave, Mrs. Tonks returned Tonks' broom to its original size. She stepped into the fireplace and spun out of sight. Tonks and Charlie sped out of the house. Charlie grabbed his broom from the shed and they both kicked off.

They landed in the paddock. Tonks had brought a couple of Muggle balls, one was about the size of a Quaffle, and the other was a Muggle golf ball. She wanted to try out for a Chaser position, so Charlie offered to play Keeper, while she tried to score. She tossed the golf ball to him, until she got frustrated that she couldn't trick him into missing it.

They walked back to the house, chatting about their summer. Tonks', being an only child, was fascinated with the workings of a large family. Charlie couldn't help but be a tad jealous of Tonks. He joked about switching families for a week, so they could each see what it was like. When they reached the house, Charlie's Mum told them to get cleaned up. They came down and joined the family at the table.

After pudding, Charlie said his good byes to Tonks. She tripped into the fireplace, and spun out of sight. Charlie was glad that school would be starting very soon. He missed his friends and couldn't wait to be with them all again.


	6. Could Trouble Be Brewing

As always, the whole family saw the boys off at Kings Cross Station. Percy could be heard muttering "just two more years, just two more years." Charlie laughed at his younger brother. He didn't know if Percy was anxious to go to Hogwarts because he was excited to go and learn, or if he just wanted to get away from Fred and George.

The train ride was also uneventful. He spent it with his friends, doing much the same things that they'd done on every other ride. Charlie had owled the other boys in his dorm, to make sure they all rode in the same compartment, so they were joined by Andrew Rudder, Donnelly Callaghan and Barry Pullman. They had obviously been in class with Tonks and Peyton, but didn't really know them. Tonks took the opportunity to entertain them with her ability. More than once, the prefects poked their heads into the compartment to tell them to settle down.

"Settle down…why do we need to be settled down? We have to be settled when we're at school," Tonks ranted through her pig snout. That set off another round of hysterics from the others in the compartment. The Trolley Witch came by, and Charlie and his friends all pitched in for snacks and sweets to share.

The girls got their robes and went to change, and the boys followed suit. They returned to the carriage, and the girls weren't back yet. Eric muttered something about them taking so long. Barry mentioned that his older sister took five times longer to do anything.

"What does that have to do with anything; they still should have been back by now."

Charlie looked at him, and raised his eyebrows. "They ARE actually GIRLS you know."

At that moment, the compartment door opened and Peyton and Tonks stepped in.

"Who's a girl?" Tonks had her mischievous sparkle in her eyes.

Charlie could feel the blush rising in his face. It was really the Weasley Curse; the red hair and the fact that they all blushed over nothing. "Um, you and Peyton are girls…just a statement of fact, really."

"Really, Charlie…you're JUST noticing we're girls? That's a bit insulting, don't you think, Peyton?"

"Too right, it is" Peyton and Tonks lost their struggle to look serious and stern. They dropped to their seats and collapsed against each other, consumed with giggles. Each time they got a little bit of control, they looked at Charlie, he would blush, and they would be consumed again.

Charlie decided to save himself further torture by getting out his Exploding Snap cards. He asked who wanted to play, and then dealt the cards. They finished out their journey to school without further embarrassment to Charlie or the other boys, though they did all sport sooty faces from the cards exploding.

They disembarked from the train, and carried their trunks to the waiting horseless carriages.

"These things are spooky, yeah. I wonder if it's just magic pulling them, or of it's something else?"Eric looked at him with raised eyebrows. "What else could it be? Invisible horses? Whoever's heard of such a thing?"

Andrew made a sound like a choke. "Whoever's heard of such a thing? Think back to last summer, around 'bout July. Did you think you'd be going to school in a magical castle, waving a wand about?" He shook his head and muttered, "Whoever's heard of such a thing…Muggles…I just don't understand them."

They passed through the Entrance Hall, and into the Great Hall. They said their good byes to Peyton and Tonks, and sat at Gryffindor Table. Charlie raised his hand to wave to Bill as he sat down. He and his friends tried not to laugh at the scared faces of the First Years. Charlie still remembered how nervous he was, and wasn't going to laugh at them.

They sat through the Sorting Hats song, and then listened as the First Years were sorted into their Houses. Conor O'Reilly, Betty Dixon and Jeffery Churchill were among the ten sorted into Gryffindor. Charlie joined his House in cheering for their new members. He noticed that the Slytherins booed at each person sorted into Gryffindor. He didn't think they had done that last year, if they did, he hadn't noticed. He looked at Eric, and raised his eyebrows. EEric shook his head, and raised his shoulders, as if to say, "I didn't notice it last year, either."

Professor Dumbledore came to the podium and gave a few start of term notices. Charlie noticed that more products from Zonko's were banned. The twins would certainly be disappointed if every item was banned before they even got to school. He was sure they would figure something out. Charlie was pulled from his thoughts when Eric tapped his shoulders. He missed most of Professor Dumbledore's speech, but did hear him say, "Tuck in." With those words, the feast appeared on the tables, and Charlie filled his plates with all his favourites.

They followed the Prefects to the Common Room, and they were given the password to enter. As Second Year students, they were not required to go to bed as early as the First Years, but the Prefects did still have the obligation to get them upstairs at a certain hour. They climbed the stairs to their dormitory, and found their trunks at the foot of their beds. They figured they had at least an hour before the Prefects would start telling them to go to sleep.

"So, Charlie, how was your summer? Did you do anything fun?"

"It was crowded. I have five brothers and a sister. I love them and all, but sometimes, I wish it wasn't so crowded. My little brothers took my wand…but this time, they didn't do anything horrible. Last summer, they took Bill's, and turned my baby brother's teddy bear into a spider. The poor boy's never been the same."

Eric looked surprised. "How can they do magic, they told me that if I did magic, I would get in trouble. How come you don't get in trouble?"

"It's harder to track in magical families. When we send our acceptance to our Hogwarts letter, it activates the Trace. They don't put it on younger kids, or on wands, because little kids sometimes get their mum or dads wand, or they have accidental magic. So, my brothers really only have to fear the wrath of Mum…which is scary in itself."

"What did she do to them?" Donnelly was interested in everything Charlie had to say about his family, because he was an only child.

"Oh, I thought she was a bit cruel, she restricted them from each OTHER. They couldn't even be in the same room, except to eat and sleep. It was the quietest two weeks my house has seen since they were born. They were going to bed directly after supper, just so they could be together. I think it's the first time I've felt badly for the twins."

"I've never heard of being on restriction from another person before…I guess it's pretty bad punishment for twins, though."

Charlie looked over at Eric. "What did you do? What do Muggles do for fun?"

"We went on a bit of a seaside holiday. My parents probably won't ever do anything else. I was anxious to get back to school."

A prefect poked his head into the room.

"Time for bed, lads. Lights off. Classes begin tomorrow."

They took their time getting ready for bed, and the Prefect had to poke his head in again. Charlie grabbed his dragon from his trunk and climbed into bed. He closed his drapes, and rolled over. They all muttered their good nights to each other, and within moments, there was no sound in the dormitory.

The next morning, they all trudged to the Great Hall together. They took their seats at the Gryffindor Table. Charlie piled his plate full of his favourite foods. Professor McGonagall passed out the timetables to all the students. Potions was their first class, and again, it was with the Slytherins. He and his friends made their way to the dungeon. They got themselves set up in front of their cauldrons. They were beginning to work on Swelling Solutions, and every Gryffindor student had read the required chapter. They were all hoping to get through the class without losing any House Points.

"Mr. Weasley, please tell me the main ingredient of Swelling Solutions."

"Sir, Puffer Fish Eyes are the main ingredient of Swelling Solutions. It is believed that the properties of the eyes allow the fish to grow in size when threatened. This property is used in the potion to cause items to grow in size when the potion is applied."

"Mr. Weasley, there is no need to show off, five points from Gryffindor."

The Slytherins all began to snicker at Charlie, who had blushed to a brilliant red colour. Melrose Nudds, a particularly nasty Slytherin flicked his wand and muttered a spell. Charlie felt his nose tingle, and he slapped his hand over it.

"Eric, what did Nudds do to my nose?"

"Charlie, it's turned brown. D'you think you should go to the Hospital Wing?"

"I don't know what's worse, asking to leave, or going through the class like this."

"Gentlemen, do I need to take more points for talking out of turn?"

"No sir, I'm sorry sir."

Professor Snape looked down his nose at Charlie and Eric. There was a flicker of something that could be confused with a smile, if someone didn't know Professor Snape.

"You have something on your nose, Mr. Weasley." At this comment, the entire Slytherin side of the room erupted in laughter. The Gryffindor students all glared across the room at them. "Would you like to go to the Hospital Wing to have your brown nose removed? Though, Madam Pomfrey might have some trouble with that."

"Thank you, sir. Shall I return to class when she's finished?"

"That won't be necessary. Mr. Harris, you may accompany him."

Charlie and Eric made their way to the hospital wing. Madam Pomfrey was able to put his nose to rights in a moment. He wasn't sure why Professor Snape wouldn't want them to return, but decided to go back to the tower until it was time for History of Magic. Charlie took out his chess set and sat down at a table. The Common Room was deserted, as all the students were at class. He and Eric played chess until it was time to head to History of Magic.

As the two boys walked to class, several second year Slytherin students blocked them. Leading the group was Melrose Nudds.

"Excuse us; we're going to be late for class."

"There he goes again, worried about class. Maybe I should make your nose brown again."

Eric raised his wand, but Charlie put his hand out to stop him. Having dealt with the twins, he knew that whatever was going to happen was going to happen. He hadn't seen anything yet that a qualified adult couldn't put right. Attacking them would just get them into trouble, which is what the Slytherins were looking for. Charlie was hoping they could get by them without incident, or that a teacher would happen by, and send the Slytherins on their way.

"Mr. Nudds, is there something I can help you with?"

Charlie was happy to see Professor Sprout come around the corner.

"I believe you all have classes to be in. In fact, the Slytherins are with me. How wonderful, let's walk to the greenhouses together."

Charlie let out the breath he hadn't known he was holding. He and Eric hurried to class. They were bombarded with questions about the Hospital Wing and being detained in the corridor. It was Charlie's turn to take notes in class, so he turned to face forward, and prepared his quill. The end of class was signalled, and Professor Binns assigned 3 feet or parchment on the Difficulty of Defining a Being in regards to the Wizards' Council in 1269.

They all hurried to Gryffindor Tower to drop off their belongings before supper. Charlie saw a boy pinning a notice to the notice board. He caught a glimpse of a badge, so he reckoned it was a Prefect posting more banned items. He took a look, and gasped.

"Eric…Quidditch…Seeker….d'you think I can"

"Charlie, mate, calm down…what are you on about?"

Charlie took several breaths, and tried again. "That was the Quidditch Captain. He just put up a notice. Quidditch tryouts are this coming weekend. It says the Seeker's left school, so there isn't a returning student for the Seeker position. That's MY position. I practiced all summer. I think I can do it."

"I'll bet you can, mate. Let's worry about it after supper and homework."

They joined their House at supper, where they discussed the History of Magic homework. After supper, they all sat together in the Common Room, where they finished their essays. Barry and Donnelly shared their Potions notes and the homework assignment, so Charlie and Eric wouldn't fall behind.

Charlie went to bed, and dreamed of playing Seeker for the Gryffindor team.


	7. Quidditch trials and practice

_He could feel the wind whipping through his hair. He reached his hand, stretching further than he thought he could. He was just about to close his hand around the snitch. His fingers were closing…_

Charlie felt the cold jet of water from someone's wand hit him. He sputtered and sat up, whipping his head around, looking for the owner of the wand that woke him so rudely. In his dream, he was just about to catch the snitch, and win the World Cup for England.

"Sorry, mate. It's time to go to breakfast. Then we've got Herbology with the Hufflepuffs."

"Right, right, I'm up…" Charlie got out of bed, and started to the door, pulling on his clothes as he went.

They found their friends at the table, and grabbed a quick breakfast. They were late, so they ate as they walked to Herbology. They walked into Greenhouse 3 and saw a pile of earmuffs. It wasn't particularly warm out, but it certainly wasn't cold enough for earmuffs, so Charlie's interest was peaked. He and Eric took their usual places with Tonks and Peyton, and said their hellos.

"What happened with you and the slimy serpent in Potions, yesterday? We heard Nudds cursed your nose off, but, apparently THAT isn't the case…so what really happened?"

"Well, the Nudds and the nose part are accurate. You know how Snape take points from Gryffindor for everything, right. So we all make sure we're well prepared for class. Apparently, I prepared too well for class yesterday, and Nudds decided I was trying to suck up, and he made my nose turn brown. It really was childish, and Madam Pomfrey put me to rights in about a minute."

Professor Sprout called for their attention, and gave them their assignment for the morning. They would be transplanting Mandrakes from one pot to another. She cautioned them to wear their earmuffs, because the cry of a Mandrake could kill. These Mandrakes were too young to kill, but could knock someone out for a few hours. Professor Sprout mentioned that one of her students yesterday hadn't listened to the warning, and didn't don his earmuffs correctly, and was recovering in the Hospital Wing. Charlie thought he saw the professor wink in his direction, but he wasn't sure.

"Hey, Eric," Charlie spoke in a whisper, "reckon it's Nudds in the Hospital Wing?"

"Dunno, but I don't want to be the first Gryffindor to end up there, so let's pay attention."

They donned their fuzzy earmuffs; Tonks had practically run to the front to get the pink ones. They watched Professor Sprout firmly pull the Mandrake out of its pot, and then quickly stuffed it into another one, packing dirt around it. Eric tugged at Charlie's arm, and pointed at the bottom of the plant. Charlie raised his eyebrows and shrugged. They looked like babies. Screaming babies. Charlie thought of his siblings as babies and smirked…he would have liked earmuffs to protect him from THEIR screaming.

They transplanted several of the Mandrakes before Professor Sprout indicated that they were to finish and remove their earmuffs. She cast a scourgify spell on the class before they left. Charlie and Eric bid good-bye to Tonks and Peyton, and hurried to Transfiguration.

Charlie wasn't sure how he was going to make it through the rest of the week. He was anxious about the Quidditch trials. He hadn't been aware that last years Seeker was leaving school, and really was only planning to try out for the practice. Now, he wondered if he had a real shot at making the team. Second year students rarely even made the Reserve team and Charlie kept telling himself that he wouldn't be disappointed if he were passed over.

Saturday morning, at breakfast, Charlie received an owl from Hagrid. He told Charlie that there were some new Unicorn foals in the Forest, and he wanted Charlie to see them. Normally, Unicorns don't trust men, but this herd trusted Charlie, after all the time he spent exploring the Forest with Hagrid. Hagrid mentioned in the note that he hoped that the Unicorns would allow Hagrid to check over the foals, if Charlie was with him. Charlie responded that he would be there as soon at the trials were finished. He couldn't help thinking that at least he had something to look forward to, when he totally blew his first chance at the Quidditch team.

Eric forced a bit of toast on Charlie, and then walked with him toward the Pitch. Charlie looked like he was either going to be sick, or run away. In fact, when he saw the older students lined up to enter the Pitch, he turned on his heel, and started to go back. Eric grabbed his shoulder, and turned him back around.

"Charlie, you'll do fine. Tonks was telling us about her visit over the summer. She say's you're BRILLIANT in the air. You've got no worries…you won't make a fool of yourself out there."

"Maybe I won't make a fool of myself, but I won't make the team either. I should just wait until next year."

"That's rubbish, Charlie, and you know it" A female voice came from behind them. Tonks and Peyton had come down after they finished breakfast as well.

"You're brilliant at Seeker. I've flown with you remember. You were catching the golf ball I threw to you." She turned to Eric and Peyton, "Every single time…he never missed once. I think he's got a real chance."

The girls, and Eric took seats in the bleachers, and Charlie joined the queue of hopefuls. He watched the Chasers make their attempt. There were about twelve good candidates. Charlie wasn't envious of the Captain, having to make that decision. There was only one Keeper hopeful, and he was a returning player. There were five Seeker hopefuls. Charlie moved to the back of the queue, so he could watch the others before making his attempt.

The first Seeker fell off her broom. Charlie didn't think he needed to worry about HER making the team. The second Seeker to attempt flew well, but didn't seem to understand that they needed to look for the snitch. The captain, Mick Murphy, then sent the remaining Seeker hopefuls into the air, hoping that one of them would grab the snitch before it flew away from the pitch.

Charlie flew up, above the other players, and hovered on his broom. He scanned all around the Pitch, looking for the glint of gold. At one point, he thought he saw a flash, and started flying toward it, but stopped when he realized it was just the sun reflecting off another player's hair. Charlie had been in the air for fifteen minutes, and it appeared that no one had even SEEN the snitch. He slowly started to circle the Pitch, varying his height in the air. He looked around one more time, and was sure that he saw it. He sped up, and raced across the Pitch, changing direction so quickly, that the other players were too surprised to react at first. The snitch took off across the pitch, and Charlie turned his broom around on the spot, and followed.

By now, the other players saw the snitch was well, but Charlie had a head start on all of them. He also appeared to have more talent on the broom than any other player on the pitch. He could dodge and weave around the players without losing speed. He kept one eye on the snitch, and his other on the other players. After chasing the snitch over the pitch several times, Charlie decided it was time to end the chase. He put on a burst of speed and reached his arm out. His fingers brushed the wings on the snitch, and he quickly closed his hand around it. He turned around, and flew back to the captain. He dropped the snitch in the captain's hand, and smiled.

"Well, since none of the rest of you lot came even close, Weasley is our new Seeker." He turned to look at Charlie. "You've got to work on catching it faster, though, or we'll still finish at the bottom of the Quidditch Cup standings…" He dropped his eyes and his voice, "again."

"I will, and thank you. I'll work hard; I won't make you sorry you chose me."

"I couldn't very well choose any of the others, could I?"

Charlie shrugged and walked to the changing rooms. Eric and the girls hurried up to him.

"Charlie, you were brilliant. I told you that you had nothing to worry about."

Charlie blushed at the compliment. Tonks slapped his head.

"Wh-what was THAT for?"

"For being a right idiot before the trials. We all knew you would be great. Congratulations on being made Seeker." She started to walk back to the castle. She looked back over her shoulder and winked at Charlie. "Too bad Hufflepuff's going to flatten you."

"If I hadn't told Hagrid I'd go into the Forest with him, you'd be in trouble, Tonks. As it is, you'd better watch yourself."

She stuck her tongue out at him, and set off for the castle at a jog. Charlie couldn't help but laugh when she tripped on her robes, and landed in a heap on the lawn. He shook his head, and started to walk toward Hagrid's hut.

"Charlie…glad yer here. The Unicorns won't let me near the foals. Thought maybe they'd let me if you were with me."

"I'm glad to go into the Forest with you Hagrid…but I don't know what I can do to help."

"The Unicorns trust ya, Charlie. They seem to sense something about ya."

They walked together into the Forest. Hagrid kept Fang, his boarhound, with them for protection. They walked for about ten minutes, until they reached a small clearing. In the centre, Charlie saw several adult unicorns circling around two golden hued foals. A male unicorn walked to the edge of the clearing, blocking the mother and foals. Charlie reached out his hand, and hoped for the best. Charlie waited until the male unicorn stepped aside, then he and Hagrid entered the clearing. The female unicorns also stepped aside, and allowed Hagrid to examine the unicorn foals. He declared them healthy, and the duo left the Forest.

"Yeh'll be starting Care of Magical Creatures next year, yeh have quite a way with magical creatures. Yeh'll do well in that class."

"I like magical creatures. I still can't believe the unicorns let us in. They don't really like men very much. I guess, maybe because I'm still a kid, it made it ok?"

"Dunno why they trust ya…but they do. Creatures know more than we give 'em credit fer. Yeh have a gift, Charlie Weasley, a gift. Better get back to the castle fer lunch. Thank yeh for yer help."

Charlie went back to the castle, and met his friends in the Great Hall. He told them about the unicorns and the foals. The other students were quite interested in magical creatures as well, and the Muggle born girls, especially, were very interested in unicorns. Charlie was happy to tell them about his venture into the Forest with Hagrid. In fact, Charlie was going to ask Hagrid if he could bring a friend along on his visits from now on.

The rest of the month seemed to creep by. Charlie was to start Quidditch practice the first Saturday of October, and he was anxious to do a good job. He had spent some free time flying around the pitch. Charlie was aware that the captain had taken a chance by putting him on the team. He was sure he wouldn't win every match, but he didn't want to lose them all either. The spent the rest of the time with classes and visiting Hagrid. On occasion, either Eric, or one of the girls would accompany him. On those days, they didn't go into the Forest. Hagrid was actually quite selective about which students he brought into the Forest.

Finally, the first practice came, and Charlie hurried through breakfast. He took off for the pitch, and joined the rest of the team. They listened as the captain outlined his game plan for the Quidditch season.

"We lost a lot of good players last year. We need to learn to work together as a team. We'll be on this pitch every Saturday morning, right after breakfast, no exceptions." Mick looked sternly at two of his Chasers. "Tegan, Naomh…You are on a team…this isn't the Tegan/Naomh show. Let us all do our jobs, and we might just win some games this year."

Charlie remembered Bill and then Mick, mentioning that Gryffindor finished the season at the bottom standings, having lost every game they played. He hoped that they wouldn't have a repeat of last season.

"Charlie, can you throw a Quaffle? I want our Keeper to get some practice, but I need to get these Chasers whipped into shape."

"I'm a fair hand with the Quaffle, not Chaser quality, but I'll be able to hit the rings."

"Great, you head to the other end of the pitch with David. We'll get you some Seeker practice too, but this is where I need you right now."

"That's fine; I'll do what you need me to do. We play pick up games at home, so I'm all right with all the positions.""Good to know Weasley…good to know. Now get to the other end of the pitch and throw the Quaffle"

Charlie helped the Keeper practice, until they both decided that Charlie wasn't actually good enough to give him any real practice. David, the Keeper, signalled Mick to come over.

"Can I let the snitch out for Weasley? I'm just blocking everything he's throwing anyway…and he doesn't need to learn to be a Chaser. S'not his position."

Mick appeared to be considering the option, and then he nodded his head. "Go ahead, Ritter. You know where we keep the practice snitches, right? They're charmed not to leave the pitch, but sometimes, if you take too long, they'll fly away. Don't let that happen, Weasley. Madam Hooch will have my badge if I lose snitches."

David released a snitch, and a moment later, Charlie was in the air. He again hovered above the pitch. He thought it might be a bit easier to see it with less people in the air. He wasn't sure whether that was an advantage or a disadvantage, because during a game, there would be two full teams flying around, and he'd have to avoid Bludgers too. He caught a glint of gold down near the ground, and flew toward it. He wasn't daft enough to do a full out dive, but he was determined to catch it. He barely touched the snitch, and it flew up and away across the pitch. Charlie turned on his broom and went racing after it. A few moments later, he reached the snitch and snatched it out of the air.

"It took you less time this time, Weasley."

"I found it a bit easier with less people playing Seeker. I'm sure I'll get better in time. I told you I wouldn't make you sorry for picking me."

"The more I watch you fly, the more I know you were the best choice, not just the 'best of what I had to choose from' choice. Head back to the castle, practice is over for today."

Charlie landed his broom and went to the changing room. He stowed his Quidditch gear and his broom, and headed back to the castle. He hurried back to the Common Room where he found his friends building card houses with Exploding Snap cards. He watched for a few minutes before he tried to add a card, and exploded the entire building. They all groaned, and cleaned up the mess. As a group, they all went down to the Great Hall for lunch.


	8. Trouble With Nudds

A/N: I realized I used one of my names twice...I named the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain the same as a new first year that Charlie met on the train. I've corrected it in previous chapters. The captain's name is now Mick Murphy. Sorry about that.

* * *

October was a blur of classes and Quidditch practice. Charlie tried to avoid Nudds and his lot, often turning around and going the least direct way, if he saw them in the halls. Some would call him cowardly, he was sure. He preferred to think of himself as prudent. He couldn't afford to miss Quidditch practice, which had been extended to three evenings a week, as well as Saturday mornings. Charlie didn't want to chance getting detention, and Nudds seemed to want to make Charlie's life miserable. One morning, however, in Potions, Nudds began to try and get Charlie in trouble.

"Been avoiding me, Weasley? How many classes have you been late for, going the long way 'round?"

Charlie kept his attention to setting up for class. "Haven't been avoiding you, just not looking for trouble."

Professor Snape came into the room, his black cloak billowing behind him. Charlie thought he looked like a bat, swooping down on them.

"Today will be a practical quiz. You will work on your own, and prepare the Deflating Draught. There will be no discussion with your classmates. The ingredients and procedure are on the board." He flicked his wand and writing appeared on the chalkboard.

The class began to work silently. Charlie read the instructions on the board several times before he started work. He noticed that the ingredients were the same as the swelling solution, the procedure, however was drastically different. As always, he prepared all his ingredients first. He diced his puffer fish eyes and placed them in a pile on his worktable. He was beginning to prepare his lionfish spines when Nudds walked by his table. Charlie wasn't sure how it happened, he hadn't seen Nudds put his hand on the table, but all of the puffer fish eye pieces were now lying useless, on the floor. Nudds looked back at him and smirked, almost daring Charlie to do something about it. Eric shoved a scrap of parchment at Charlie. On it was written _'are you going to let him do that to you, mate?'_ Charlie scribbled back, _'in THIS class, are you BARKING, I'll be the one in trouble'_ Professor Snape walked over and plucked the parchment off the table.

"I believe I told you to work on your own. Ten points from Gryffindor, and if I see you talking or writing again, you will fail the quiz. Mr. Weasley, you've soiled my floor with your ingredients. They are useless now. Redo them." He went back to the front of the room and burned the parchment with his wand. "Oh, and Mr. Weasley, clean up my floor, and DO try to be more careful."

Charlie cleaned the floor, and tried to ignore the quiet laughter coming from the Slytherin side of the dungeon. He saw Eric dicing more puffer fish eyes for him, and hoped that they weren't caught. He would be lucky to finish the potion in time. He disposed of the ruined ingredients and went back to his table. He finished dicing the eyes, and started his potion. He was pleasantly surprised that the potion came together quickly, and was relieved that it was finished in the allotted time. He labelled his phial and handed it in. Professor Snape would be marking them later, and handing them back.

Charlie and Eric left the dungeon and started toward the Great Hall for lunch. The classmates discussed what happened in Potions and most agreed that they wouldn't have kept their temper as well as Charlie had. Charlie laughed when he heard that.

"You haven't lived with the tag team twin terrors. My brothers live to bait us into losing our tempers. Bill and I, we're older. We try not to let them get to us, but my little brother and sister, they go SPARE. So does Mum. I think she'll be happy when THEY come to Hogwarts. Though I don't envy Professor Dumbledore, or their Head of House."

Any mention of his siblings always brought on questions. What's it like to have a big family? Do you miss them? If you had a choice, would you stay home or come to school? Charlie always found it so hard to answer those questions. He loved his family with all his heart, but he was quite different from them. Bill had been his best friend before Hogwarts, and they were still close. Bill, however, was very different from Charlie. Percy was quiet, and didn't seem to need anyone. The twins were fun, but loud. He really could only take them in small doses. Christmas break was always fun, but summer was too long. He was always tired of their antics and ready to get on the train. Ron and Ginny were still babies in Charlie's eyes. He missed them, but he liked being at school too. At school, there was a lot of freedom. They made their own choices. Even though there were almost 300 students at the castle, it was never crowded. It was never loud. There was always somewhere that he could go to be alone. Charlie tended to answer any questions vaguely, and hoped people would stop asking.

Eric had forgotten something in the Common Room, so he left lunch as soon as he'd finished. Charlie left a few minutes after that, hoping to catch up with Tonks before they both needed to be in class. He had just left the Great Hall when he saw Nudds. Unfortunately, there was no alternate route to the History of Magic classroom, so Charlie began to walk by him, and hoped for the best.

"You really are a wimp, Weasley. I can't believe you did NOTHING about me in Potions."

"What was I to do, if I complained to Professor Snape, it would have gotten me in more trouble. Honestly, Nudds, you really aren't worth my time."

Unfortunately, that statement offended Nudds. He stepped in front of Charlie, blocking his way.

"I'm not worth your TIME? Really? I can make your life miserable, Weasley. You'd do well to remember that." He gave Charlie a shove that knocked him down. Charlie drew his wand as he got up. They hadn't done any duelling in Defence Class, but he hoped he could at least put up a shield charm, or something. He didn't realize Professor Snape had left the Great Hall until he heard his voice.

"Wands in the Corridor, Mr. Weasley? Surely you know that's against the rules."

"I haven't done Magic, Sir. I was pushed down, and I guess I wasn't thinking."

"Who pushed you down, Mr. Weasley? I don't see anyone here at all. Are you sure you didn't just trip. Perhaps a detention will serve to reinforce in your meager brain that Magic ISN'T allowed in the corridors."

Charlie sighed. He realized that arguing wouldn't change anything, and would probably make it worse. He really wished he knew whether Bill received detentions. Charlie had not had a detention since the first one he received. It wasn't as though he made a habit of it, but he was still worried about letting his Mum and Dad down.

"Sir, shall I see you at the end of the day to schedule my detention?"

"That won't be necessary. You will spend Saturday morning with Mr. Filch…you will do whatever he tells you to."

Charlie's heart was heavy. Saturday morning detention meant missing Quidditch practice. Their first game was next week. Hopefully, Mick wouldn't be too angry with him. They still had the three weekday practices, and Charlie was confident that he would be ready for the match. He hurried to History of Magic, and quietly sat in the back.

Charlie caught Mick in the Common Room later that evening and told him about the detention. As predicted, Mick was livid. When Charlie told him the whole story, he offered to go to Professor McGonagall himself, asking her to appeal to Professor Snape. Charlie didn't think it would do much good, and offered to do extra practice on his own during his next free period. Mick told him not to worry about it, and walked away, muttering about ruddy biased professors. Charlie couldn't help but agree with him.

After breakfast on Saturday, Charlie walked to Mr. Filch's office. He was apprehensive, knowing that Mr. Filch tended to be bitter, and angry. He really had no idea what was in store for him. He expected that it would be hard labour, to be done without magic. He was right. Mr. Filch sent him to the second floor, where a ghost had flooded an out of order toilet. Charlie was to clean it entirely, without using magic. He hoped that, because it was out of order, that it wouldn't be too disgusting. He spent all morning with a mop, bucket and Muggle cleaning tools and chemicals. As he expected, it wasn't disgusting, just hard work.

Charlie hurried out to the Quidditch Pitch when he finished, hoping to see the team still practicing. He was disappointed to see players clad in yellow and black in the air. He saw Tonks sitting by herself in the stands, and he walked over and sat next to her.

"Oh, Wotcher, Charlie…done with detention?"

"Yeah, had to clean Moaning Myrtle's toilet. I don't know why she has to flood it all the time."

"Someone probably disturbed her lamenting on life. Typical for her, you know. Have you ever wondered why she's here?"

"Can't say that I have. You'll have to ask her some day."

"I don't think so, that'd probably set her off too."

"Could be. So, why are you watching practice?"

"Just watching. I might try for Chaser next year. I haven't really decided yet."

"You'll be brilliant if you do try. I've seen you on a broom."

Charlie punched her lightly on the arm. She looked at him and smiled.

"I'll leave you to watching your team. I have to go check with mine, see what I missed."

"Ok, I'll see you later, Charlie."

Charlie started back to the castle. He knew that Mick was working on some new plays for the match, and he needed to at least be familiar with them. As Seeker, he wasn't involved in much of the game play, but he understood Mick's desire that he know what was going on. He climbed through the portrait hole and immediately saw his Captain.

"Mick, I really am sorry about detention. I'd been avoiding Nudds, he's got it in for me. What did I miss?"

"Weasley, no worries, really. The Chasers worked on some passing techniques, and I drilled the Keeper. You just need to stay out of the way of the Bludgers, and concentrate on catching the Snitch. It'll be fine. But, let's try not to get detention again…yeah?"

"I WAS trying not to get detention. Between Nudds and Snape, I had no chance."

Mick said something about finishing a Potions essay for the 'overbearing bat' as he walked away. Charlie joined his friends at one of the tables. They were working on Charms homework. A foot of parchment was due on the tickling charm, and Professor Flitwick expected them all to be able to perform it in class the next week. Because the boys weren't allowed in the girls dorm, all the second year Gryffindors crowded into the boy's dorm to practice the charm. By dinner, every one of them could perform the charm. They were still giggling as they made their way to the Great Hall.

No one could argue that Potions, on a Monday morning was not a good way to start the week. Charlie had been anxious about his Deflating Draught all weekend. He had been rushed, and irritated. He realized that Snape would like nothing more than Charlie failing the quiz. He waited in the Great Hall as long as he could after breakfast, and even considered skiving off class. Eric convinced him that not going to class wouldn't make it better, and he would eventually have to find out how his potion turned out. With a heavy sigh, Charlie hoisted his rucksack onto his back and followed Eric to the Dungeons. He would be happy with an 'A' for his potion. Charlie just hoped that Professor Snape didn't notice Eric dicing his Puffer Fish eyes, and mark them off for it. The class was to finish an essay on the ingredients of the 'Deflating Draught' and what purpose they have in the potion. Charlie had almost finished it before class, so he sat quietly, watching the Slytherins. Professor Snape called for their parchment, and handed back their phial with a small piece of parchment attached to it. Charlie sat down at the table, and unrolled the message with a shaking hand. He looked and saw that Professor Snape had given him a 'P', along with a note that stated his grade would have been passing, had Charlie not 'coerced other members of the class to do his work for him.'

The rest of the week passed in a whirlwind of classes. The professors were gearing up for end of term, though it was still a full month away. They wanted to be sure that the students were proficient at their subject. Charlie divided his time between class, homework, Quidditch and spending time with his friends. He often felt like there weren't enough hours in the day to squeeze in everything he wanted to do.

The Saturday of the first Quidditch match found Charlie sitting at the Gryffindor table, looking rather green. Eric was trying to convince him to eat, and even Tonks was breaking tradition and sitting next to him. There was a flurry of sound above them. Tonks looked up and smiled.

"Time for Owl Post…it's my favourite part of the day. Wonder if I'll get mail today."

An owl set down right in front of Charlie and held out its leg. Charlie took the letter and looked at his friends.

"Who wrote Mum and told her the first match was today?" He fed Errol some of his bacon, gave him a pat on the head and sent him on his way.

"It was me…I thought she'd like to offer some moral support." Tonks turned a bright shade of red that clashed horribly with the pink colour she had chosen for her hair that day.

"Thanks Tonks." Charlie opened the letter. He quickly scanned the text, and then read it aloud for his friends to hear.

_Dear Charlie,_

_Both Bill and Tonks wrote to tell us your first Quidditch Match was today. It would have been nice to hear it from you, but I'll choose to believe you are just too excited and nervous to remember to write to me about the match. We're sorry that we can't go to the Castle and watch the game. I'm sure you'll do wonderfully. Owl us later today, and tell us how it went. The smaller children miss you a lot._

_Love, Mum, Ron, Ginny, Percy, Fred, George, and Dad._

Charlie folded the note and placed it in his pocket. He was going to consider it a good luck charm, unless it proved itself differently. He hurried down to the Quidditch Pitch, and changed into his kit. The team listened to Mick's pre-game speech. Hopefully, Gryffindor won the game, or Charlie feared for the captain's life. He figured that Mick was being dramatic, but one couldn't tell when it came to Quidditch.

Bill poked his head in to the changing rooms on his way to the stands. Charlie was glad to see his brother before the game. He read the note from his mum again, and then tucked it back into his pocket. He grabbed his broom and followed the rest of the team onto the pitch. They all lined up on the pitch, watched the captains shake hands, and waited for Madam Hooch to blow the whistle.


	9. The First Quidditch Match

Charlie heard the whistle and kicked off into the air. He soared above all the other players, and began scanning for the Golden Snitch. His first impression during practice had been correct. It was a bit more difficult to keep track of the game with two full teams flying around. He began to circle the pitch slowly, his mind on three things: watch for the other players, watch for the Bludgers, and watch for the Snitch. He also listened to the commentator, a Hufflepuff called Diane Conway. Charlie wondered if she would be biased toward the Hufflepuffs during the match.

Diane had her voice magically amplified, so that she could be well heard by everyone. She began her commentary by introducing the players on each team. As soon as the players were up in the air, she never stopped talking, giving a play-by-play of the action.

"Gryffindor Chaser, Naomh Vaughn, has the Quaffle. She passes to Lindsey Carlsey. Oh No…she's dropped the Quaffle…It's been caught by Hufflepuff, Betty Dixon. She's getting closer to the goals…can she put it through? Yes, she can, she's scored a goal. The score is 10-0, Hufflepuff"

There was cheering by the Hufflepuffs, and loud groans by the Gryffindors. Charlie kept his eyes darting around the pitch. He saw Mick fly up next to him, and had to speed up to get out of the way of the Bludger that Mick was going for. He watched as the Bludger headed right toward one of the Hufflepuff Chasers. Charlie held his breath while he waited to see if it would make contact or not. Zeta saw it heading for her, and was able to get out of the way.

Charlie continued circling the pitch. Both teams had scored several times, but he had stopped paying attention to the commentating, when he barely avoided being hit by a Bludger. His attention was brought back when he heard Diane's voice yelling, clearly very upset.

"That was a FOUL…call that."

Charlie looked around to see who, on his team, performed a foul. He was surprised to see that it was Tegan, sitting on her broom holding her arm. One of the Hufflepuff Beaters had run his broom into her, to knock the Quaffle out of her hand. A time out was called, so that Tegan could get her arm checked out. A foul shot would be allowed, as well…as soon as she was back in the air. Charlie used this time to continue scanning for the Snitch. He flew over to Mick.

"What do you want me to do, Mick? We'll win if I get the Snitch soon, but it won't give us a large lead in the standings. Do you want me to catch it and end the game, or do you want me to give the Chasers some more time to score."

Mick looked down at Tegan, who appeared to be ready to rejoin the game, but grimaced each time she moved.

"Weasley, if you see the Snitch, grab it and end the game. I want Tegan off her broom, and in the Hospital Wing, before she makes it so she isn't fit to play the rest of the season."

Madam Hooch blew the whistle to indicate the end of the time out, and Tegan took to the air again. She set up for the foul shot. She threw the ball weakly, and it didn't even make it to the rings. Lindsey was able to catch it, maintaining Gryffindor control of the Quaffle. She flew around, and put the Quaffle into the goal. The score was now 60-50, in favour of Hufflepuff.

Charlie was beginning to lose hope that he would see the Snitch. He didn't want to let the team down. He had tried circling the pitch up high, and also lower, in the thick of the action. He didn't like to stay there too long, between the players whipping around and the Bludgers flying about, he feared bodily harm. He was making one more circle of the pitch when he saw that flash of gold. He glanced at the Seeker for Hufflepuff, and noticed that she was at the far end of the pitch. The Snitch was closer to the middle, and it would be a toss-up of who got it, if she saw him head for it.

Charlie casually flew toward the centre of the pitch. He gave a slight nod to Mick, who nodded back with a big grin on his face. It didn't look like the other Seeker had seen the Snitch yet, so Charlie knew that as long as he didn't really mess up, or get knocked off his broom, he would be able to catch it. He put on a burst of speed when he was about five broom lengths away. He reached his hand out and his fingers brushed the wings, as the Snitch shot vertically out of his hand. He saw the Hufflepuff Seeker race toward the middle of the pitch. He pulled his broom handle up, and followed the Snitch. He had pulled his broom almost vertical, but he hadn't taken his eyes off the Snitch. He reaches his hand out again, and this time, he was able to close his hand around it. He levelled out his broom, and caught his breath.

"The Snitch has been caught by Gryffindor Seeker, Charlie Weasley. An amazing show of Broomsmanship at the end there, Charlie. I was sure you had lost the opportunity. Gryffindor wins the game with a score of 200-60. Congratulations."

The two teams landed, and gathered to shake hands. Charlie handed the Snitch to Madam Hooch, and went to the changing rooms. He saw Mick walking with Tegan toward the castle. He assumed that she would be tended to by Madam Pomfrey, and set to rights. He walked into the changing rooms, and was surrounded by the team, offering him pats on the back and congratulations. It seemed so odd to him, to be congratulated just for doing something he loved to do. Westin Malany, the other Beater raised his voice above the clamour.

"I'd say this is worthy of a celebration in the Common Room. First win of the season…at least we're starting in the right direction. I'll go to the kitchens, and meet you all back in the Common Room. Maybe Captain Mick will leave his fair lady, Tegan, and join us."

David offered to go to the Hospital Wing and let Mick know about the celebration. Charlie changed quickly, knowing his friends would be waiting for him right outside.

Eric and The Girls (Charlie always referred to them as 'The Girls.') were waiting for him right outside the changing rooms. Tonks threw her arms around him in a hug, then stepped back and swatted him.

"Let me guess, Tonks. You're happy I caught the Snitch, but mad that I won the game?"

"Well, yeah…You beat my House. I'm allowed to be perturbed. But you did great. That move at the end, where you were nearly flying vertically, that was wicked."

Peyton stood on her tiptoes and kissed Charlie on the cheek.

"You flew beautifully, Charlie. I knew you'd do well. However, did you REALLY have to beat us?

"Well, Peyton, WINNING is actually the point of the game. I think they'd kick me off the team if I didn't actually try in EVERY game, not just the games against Houses I didn't have friends in."

Tonks put forth a long suffering sigh, then smirked. She looked at Peyton, "I don't' think we have to worry. From what I understand, we don't really have to worry about Gryffindor winning the Quidditch Cup, anyway." She stuck her tongue out at Charlie. Charlie cast the Rictumsempra Charm on Tonks, and she fell to the ground, laughing. He lifted the Charm and helped her off the ground.

"I've told you, Tonks. Don't stick your tongue out at me. You do it far too often, and it's not becoming." Charlie finished the statement with a laugh.

"Me, behave in a 'becoming manner?' Let me introduce myself, as you have OBVIOUSLY never actually MET me. Tonks is the name. I've never behaved in a becoming manner in my life…much to my mums dismay." She stuck her hand out at Charlie. He took, and shook it.

"Nice to meet you, Tonks. I only pointed it out, in the hope that you would actually, sometime, choose to act your age. I see that will NEVER happen."

"Not if I can help it Charlie…acting your age isn't any fun at all."

"Right, Tonks. Anyway, Eric and I have a celebration in the Common Room to attend to. I don't expect they want me to skip it. I do wish that we could bring friends from other Houses into the Common Rooms"

Peyton nodded her head in agreement. "Or, if they had a 'common Common Room'…where it didn't matter which House you were in. They don't foster 'Inter-House Cooperation' here, do they?"

"Nope…but we do have to go. I'll see if I can save you two anything. We'll see you later."

Charlie and Eric went back to the Common Room, where they were met by the sounds of a celebration. Charlie was surprised to see Bill standing on a table.

"There he is, MY brother…hero of the Quidditch Pitch. I taught him everything he knows."

"Oi, Bill…get down from there. People are going to think you're barmy…and well…you've hidden it for so well to this point. Don't want to let it out now."

Bill got down from the table and awkwardly hugged Charlie. Charlie squirmed out of the hug, and stuck his hand out instead.

"Well done, though, Charlie. Really. You'd better owl Mum and Dad. You know they're waiting to find out about the match."

"I'll do it right now."

Charlie grabbed a quill and parchment, and sat down at the table Bill had been standing on.

_Dear Mum, Dad, Percy, Fred, George, Ronnie and Ginny,_

_Guess what. We won game. I caught the Snitch, and the score was 200-60. One of our Chasers got hurt, but I'm sure she's fine. It was fun, and I wasn't TOO nervous. I AM glad it's over, though. I can't wait for the next match._

_Love, _

_Charlie_

He rolled the parchment, and hurried to the Owlery. He held out his arm, and one of the school owls flew down to him. He attached the parchment and told the Owl to go to The Burrow. He went back to the Common Room, anxious to return to the party.

When he got back, Mick and Tegan were back from the Hospital Wing. Madam Pomfrey had mended Tegan's arm, and she was wearing a sling. She didn't appear to be in any pain, but she did look tired. She had a sandwich in her hand, but looked to be closer to falling asleep on Mick's shoulder than she was to eating the sandwich. Charlie wondered why she didn't just go to her dorm and sleep there. He couldn't imagine that someone's shoulder would be more comfortable than a bed. He decided it really wasn't HIS problem, and went to find his dorm mates.

They all enjoyed the food and fun for the afternoon. Professor McGonagall even came in for a short time, pretending she didn't notice the food and drink from the kitchens. She shook Charlie's hand, congratulating him for a match well played. As she was leaving, she reminded them all not to leave a mess, and not to be too rowdy, in case there were students who wanted to do work. She looked at the clock, and stated that she would see them all at dinner, in the Great Hall. It occurred to Charlie that this simple sentence effectively was ending the party. In order to have everything cleaned up, and the House down for dinner, they would have to start cleaning immediately. More than once, he started to pitch in, only to be stopped. He guessed his Housemates did consider him the hero of the day, and rather than fight it, Charlie decided it was better to just let it happen.

As soon as the Common Room was cleaned up, the entire House went to dinner, en mass. Charlie glanced at Professor McGonagall, who appeared pleased to see all of them sitting there. He was surprised to see that the serving dishes of food didn't seem as laden as they usually did. Who, or whatever was in charge of getting the food to the Great Hall seemed to know that Gryffindor wouldn't be hungry for a big dinner. Charlie wondered if he would ever discover all the mysteries of the castle.


	10. Dueling Club

Early in December, the Defence against the Dark Arts Professor, Professor Oldham, announced that a Duelling Club would be founded. All students, second year and above would be allowed to join. Charlie and Eric quickly decided that joining sounded like a good idea. They quickly convinced the other boys in their year to join. The first meeting for Charlie's year would occur in three days. Charlie and his friends decided to look over their Defence books, so they wouldn't be walking in completely unprepared.

Charlie went about his classes as usual, however, he was paying particular attention to any Charm or spell that might be helpful during Duelling Club. He recalled his mum telling him about a hex she used to use on her brothers. He couldn't recall the details, just that it made bats fly out of someone's nose. He decided to owl his mum, asking for instructions for the hex.

The day before the club was to meet for the first time, Charlie overheard some of the older students talking about it.

"Well, you know, every few years or so, the Defence teacher of the year tries to start a Duelling Club, and every time…someone gets hurt, and it's disbanded."

Charlie turned to look at the boys. "Sorry…I didn't mean to listen in, but you said sometimes students get hurt? Are they hurt BADLY?"

"Ah, no. No one is seriously hurt. Usually just a broken bone or bloody nose or something. Nothing that can't be fixed right up in the Hospital Wing."

Suddenly, Charlie was a little apprehensive about joining the club. He didn't really want to get hurt, or inadvertently hurt anyone else. He didn't think he really knew enough magic to do any serious damage. He had gotten a letter back from his mum, and she had told him the incantation for the Bat-Bogey Hex, and tried to explain the wand motion, but also said that it would be hard to figure out on his own. He was happy, though, that his mum promised that she would show him over the winter holiday.

The Gryffindor boys chatted throughout supper, mostly about how they were going to be the "stars" of Duelling Club. Charlie really wasn't so sure, but he hoped they would hold their own and not get hurt. They all barely ate dinner, more because of their talking than any other reason. As they were leaving the Great Hall, Charlie realized that they would be hungry later. Hopefully someone had some sweets or a package from home in their trunk that they would be willing to share.

Charlie and his friends joined the throng of students pushing toward the large classroom that was being used for the Duelling Club meeting. It was in a part of the castle that Charlie had never been. Again, Charlie wondered if he would ever learn everything about the castle that he would spend so much time in. He was a bit surprised that there was a classroom large enough to hold all the students that were participating, and still have a place to practice duelling. He caught a glimpse of bright pink from across the room. He put his hand on Eric's back, and started to push him in the direction of the girls.

"Wotcher, Charlie, Eric. Did your mum tell you how to do that bat hex?

"She told me, but I don't think I've got the wand motion figured out. She said she'd show me when I came home. If she does, and I can do it, I'll show you all."

Professor Oldham sauntered into the room. He was one of Charlie's favourite professors. Professor Oldham was very informative. He had travelled the world, and had seen many things. He loved to tell stories about the various dark creatures he had met, and the spells he had used, but he always made sure to tell the students that he had never worked alone. He came to a stop at the front of the classroom. All the chattering stopped, and in a single movement, all the students turned to look at him. Charlie looked around him, taking mental note of whom he saw. He wasn't surprised to see Nudds standing on the other side of the room.

"Welcome to Duelling Club. We will be learning and using all manner of spells to duel with our friends and classmates. One warning for you all. You WILL follow the rules, or you WILL be asked to leave. There will be no second chances. Rule number one- NO dark spells. I can't control what you learn on your own, whether it is from books or other sources, but I can control whether or not you use them. If you use a dark spell, I will know, and you will be banned from the club, AND punished…any way the Headmaster sees fit. Second rule- You will follow the traditional rules of duelling. Duelling is a very traditional sport, with a long-standing history. We are honouring the history with this club. Duelling Club is NOT to be used to curse your enemies. I will inform you of the traditional rules of Duelling in just a moment. Does anyone have any questions?" Professor Oldham looked around the room. "I see there are not. We can begin by pairing up. For this first session, feel free to pair with a friend. Future sessions, you will be pairing with people who are unfamiliar to you…as it's the best way to learn."

The students in the room all paired up. Charlie and Eric were partners, and they decided that if they needed to switch, they would pair up with the girls. Professor Oldham cleared his throat and they turned their attention back to the front of the room. The professor had chosen a student as a volunteer partner, assumedly to show them the rules of duelling.

"First, stand a few paces away from one another, and bow."

All the students followed that instruction.

"Now, hold your wand at the ready…up in front, pointing outward."

The students fixed themselves as they were shown. Professor Oldham walked about the room and corrected any student that had not set the wand correctly. When all the students were positioned correctly, he went back to the front of the room.

"On my count of three, use your spells, at this point, you are just trying to disarm your opponent.

"One, Two, Three"

Charlie and Eric shouted their spells at the same time.

"Rictumsempra!"

"Expelliarmus!"

Charlie walked over to Eric, who was writhing on the ground, laughing from the tickling charm. He plucked Eric's wand out of his hand and held it up.

"I've got his wand, Professor." Charlie pointed his own wand at Eric. "Finite Incantatem." He reached his hand down, and helped Eric to his feet. Professor Oldham walked over to the pair.

"Interesting way to disarm, Mr. Weasley. I dare say I expected to hear a room full of Expelliarmus'. It's refreshing to see a student who thinks outside the box, so to speak." Professor Oldham turned to address the rest of the students. "Mr. Weasley used a very unconventional spell to disarm his opponent. He cast the tickling charm, and whilst his partner was distracted, Mr. Weasley was able merely to pluck his wand from his hand. This shows that it is important to remember that the conventional method isn't always the best method. A show of hands, please. Who else was able to disarm their opponent?"

A small smattering of hands went up around the room. Charlie had noticed that most of the students had used Expelliarmus, and most had just rather bounced off each other. The students that had been successful had been quicker to speak the spell, or their opponent had been distracted by something. The students spent a few minutes discussing what they could have done better before they went back to their dorms. Charlie was looking forward to the next club meeting.

Due to end of term exams, Duelling Club was not set to meet until after the Holiday break. Charlie was excited to get home, because he intended to hold his mum to her promise of teaching him the Bat-Bogie Hex. Charlie and Eric spent quite a bit of time revising in empty classrooms, with the girls. Tonks was particularly talented at Transfiguration, and Peyton was exceptional at Charms. Charlie was certain that nothing, even knowing the material perfectly would help him in Potions.

The first exam that Charlie sat was Charms. He was pleased that he recognized all the theory that was on the exam. His practical portion was "Aparecium" in which he had to make a note written in invisible ink readable. The Transfiguration practical found him turning a teapot into a tortoise. He felt confident that he and done well on all the written exams that he sat for.

Professor McGonagall brought their exam results to Gryffindor Tower as they were packing to return home for the holiday. Charlie was pleased with his results. He had received E's in almost everything, though he wasn't surprised with the A in both Potions and History of Magic. Charlie shoved the parchment with his exam results into his trunk with all his other belongings. He closed the lid, and latched it. He and his dorm mates went down to breakfast. While they were eating, their trunks were brought to the Entrance Hall. Charlie finished eating, and went out to find his belongings.

Charlie and Eric made their way to the train, joining Tonks and Peyton on the path to Hogsmeade. They climbed aboard the train, and quickly stowed their trunks. Andrew and Barry joined them, and they spent the trip chatting and playing games. The journey went quickly, and soon, they changed and prepared to disembark at Kings Cross Station. They bid each other good-bye, with promises to write over the holiday. Charlie found his father and Bill, and they made their way home.

Charlie began wondering how his mum would teach him the Bat Bogey Hex, since he couldn't do magic at home. It wasn't the time to ask her, however. Charlie knew that she would be busy getting supper on the table, and then it would be time for baths and bed. He hoped that his mum would have time to start showing some time before he had to go back to school.

Charlie was surprised when the next day; his mum came to find him. She handed him a wooden spoon. Charlie wondered if she wanted him to help her cook. He sniffed, but didn't smell any cooking smells. Now, he was confused and his interest was definitely piqued.

"I have five minutes…You can't do the Hex, so grab my wooden spoon. You'll at least get the idea of the motion."

Charlie held the spoon at the ready and carefully copied the movement that his mum showed him. He found it difficult to pretend the spoon was his wand, or at least he hoped that was the problem. His mum told him they would work on it later. He continued to practice the wand motion, before he dropped the spoon in frustration. He hadn't noticed that Ginny had been watching his lesson with his mum, so he was surprised when she wandered up and picked up the spoon.

"You do like this, Charlie?" Ginny moved the spoon in the exact way that Mum had done.

Charlie growled in frustration, and stormed out of the room. He pulled on a cloak and went out into the garden. It was cold, but Charlie was content to fly in any weather. He was feeling like a failure at the Bat-Bogey Hex, and had just been shown up by a baby. He needed to do something he was good at, and flying was it. It wasn't long before he saw the twins below him. He landed his broom and walked over to the boys.

"What do you two want?"

"We just want to fly with you…"

"Maybe some Quidditch practice? You wouldn't mind helping us practice playing Beater, would you?"

"That's fine. I don't mind. Let me get something to throw at you. Up in the air, you two."

Charlie went to the side of the paddock, where they kept the rocks they used as Bludgers. He grabbed a few of them, and took off on his broom. Charlie chucked a rock at George, and he batted it away without any hesitation. Next, Charlie threw a rock at Fred. Fred was also able to bat the rock away from him. They continued this way for nearly an hour, until Fred missed a rock, and it hit him squarely in the nose. The three boys landed their brooms, and hurried back to the house. George was so concerned for his twin that he dropped his broomstick next to Fred's and went running to the house with him. Charlie sighed and gathered up all three broomsticks, and headed to the house.

He walked into the kitchen and heard the tail end of the healing spell, and the twins frantically explaining that they had TOLD Charlie to throw rocks at them, that they were practicing to be Beaters and to PLEASE not punish Charlie. It was obvious that his mum had heard the door, because she rounded on him before it even closed.

"Throwing ROCKS…at your BROTHERS? I thought you were SMARTER than that. They aren't even eight years old yet, and you're throwing ROCKS at them."

"Mum, they wanted me to, we don't have a proper Quidditch set, and rocks are as good as we've got right now."

Charlie could hear the twins clamouring behind the door in the parlour. They were trying their hardest to keep him out of trouble.

"That's what the twins said too. I guess that no flying until after Boxing Day is enough of a punishment."

She went back to her work in the kitchen muttering about boys and no common sense. Charlie quickly made his way into the parlour. He wanted to apologize to Fred. He really hadn't meant to hurt his younger brother.

"No flying until Boxing Day…."

"…I think that tops Mum's most unfair punishment"

Charlie gaped at the twins. "You think that's more unfair than restricting you from each other?"

The twins grinned at him. "Well…we did steal your wand…"

"…and this punishes US too…"

"…which was probably…"

"…the point!" They finished the statement together.

Charlie decided it was going to be a very long holiday. With no flying for a week, there was no escape when the house got too crowded. He decided to gather his homework and get a start on it. He was surprised to see that Bill was also hard at work on his homework. Charlie knew that Bill was taking many classes, and he wasn't sure how he did it. He also wasn't going to ask. One thing he'd noticed during the first semester was the Bill got a bit shirty when asked about schoolwork. Charlie decided that it wasn't worth having Bill upset with him, just to find out how he was getting all his classes in.

Christmas brought knit jumpers and a Quidditch set for the family, along with other heartfelt gifts from the family. After the traditional trip to Auntie Muriel's house and Boxing Day, Charlie, Bill and the twins were able to convince Percy to play some Quidditch with them. Percy wasn't all that happy on a broom, but he was willing to try. Charlie was surprised to find that his dad was a fair Chaser. The only people unhappy with the family gift were Ron and Ginny. They were both feeling awfully left out and sad. Charlie swooped down on his broom and sat Ron on his broom. Bill followed suit, and took Ginny on his.

When they landed, Ginny looked at Charlie and Bill with a very serious face.

"I'm going to play Quidditch some day. I'm going to be famous and everyone is going to know my name."

Charlie reached down and rubbed her head gently. "I'm sure they will, Gin-Gin. I'll bet you're a famous Chaser before you leave Hogwarts."

After a week of family Quidditch matches, Charlie and Bill were packed and ready to head back to Hogwarts. Charlie was happy to sit in the train compartment with his friends, just talking, and catching up. Tonks was thrilled to hear about the Quidditch set, and extracted a promise of another visit during the summer, just so that she could play. It had been a nice break, but Charlie couldn't wait to get back to school.


	11. apology

There is going to be a short break in updates, my house was broken into tonight, and my laptop was stolen

There is going to be a short break in updates, my house was broken into tonight, and my laptop was stolen. It had everything on it, and I don't know when I'm going to be getting a new one. I haven't abandoned the story…but I'm going away for a few weeks, and had thought I would have my laptop to update while I was away. I'm sorry for the delay that will occur.


	12. Winter of second year

Charlie met Eric at Kings Cross Station, and quickly set themselves in a compartment. They left the door open, so that Tonks and Peyton could find them. Eric couldn't wait to see what Tonks had brought to trick him. It seemed like she did something after every winter holiday. Charlie expected her to walk into the compartment with a mischievous grin, brimming to have a go at Eric and his Muggle upbringing. They all knew it was in good fun, and Eric always took it with a smile and threat of revenge someday.

Tonks fell into the compartment, having tripped over her own feet. She dragged her trunk in behind her. Charlie reached out his hand to help her up, while Eric and Peyton grabbed her trunk, and stowed it.

"So, Charlie…did your Mum teach you the Hex…you know, the bat one?"

Charlie flushed a bright shade of red. "She taught me, I couldn't seem to get the wand motion quite right, though. Maybe over the summer, you can visit, and Mum can teach YOU."

They were chatting about their holiday when a Gryffindor Prefect stuck his head in the door.

"I'm to tell you that Professor McGonagall will be meeting with the Second Year Gryffindor students after dinner. You'll be meeting in her classroom. She expects you to be on time."

Charlie and Eric looked at each other and shrugged. Charlie reckoned that they would find out what the meeting was all about in due time. A few minutes later, a Hufflepuff Prefect popped in with a similar message. They agreed to compare notes later.

The boys hurried through dinner and went to find seats in the Transfiguration Classroom. Professor McGonagall had never called a meeting like this, so they were all feeling a little apprehensive. She walked into the classroom and stood in front of her desk, the low chatter of the students stopped immediately, and they all turned their attention to their teacher.

"As many of you know, Third Year students add courses to the current course of study. You will be given a form to bring home at Easter Holiday, along with course information. You may certainly discuss your choices with older siblings and your parents, but only you can decide what is important for you to study."

Eric raised his hand. "Professor, what about Muggleborn students? I know my parents won't know the difference between the difference courses, let alone know how to help me choose what subjects to revise."

"Good point, Mr. Harris. For those of you who are Muggleborn, you may feel free to make an appointment to speak to any of the Prefects or me for help deciding. I would suggest that you still confer with your parents. It's important that you don't exclude them from your life."

Professor McGonagall flicked her wand, and a parchment and several brochures went flying out to the students. They all gathered their things and Professor McGonagall dismissed them to the Common Room. Charlie and his friends discussed the options they were facing. He was sure that he was going to take Care of Magical Creatures, but beyond that, he didn't know.

"Charlie, what courses did your brother choose? Are you going to go for the same thing?"

Charlie looked at Eric and shook his head. "My brother is mental, taking all he does. I don't know how he has enough hours in the day. Homework was all he did over the holiday. I have to leave time for Quidditch too."

Charlie really wasn't sure how Bill was managing all his courses. He knew his brother was highly stressed and not much fun to be around. He didn't want to be so concerned with getting his O.W.L.S, that he didn't have time to have fun too. He was learning a lot at Hogwarts, but he was having fun too. Charlie decided to pack away the information, and deal with it later. The boys traded stories about their holiday until a Prefect poked his head in and told them it was time to go to sleep.

Charlie woke to the sounds of the other boys getting ready for the day. He threw open his drapes, and gasped as his bare feet hit the cold stone floor. The other boys looked over at him, and Barry laughed loudly.

"That's what you get; mate, for forgetting to put your slippers next to the bed. It's January, in Scotland, in a CASTLE…were you expecting the floor to be WARM?"

"Shut it Barry, I forgot to pack my slippers…I'm sure Mum will send them straight away. You all just keep having a laugh at my discomfort."

"Um, Charlie…did you even owl her to let her know to send them? If not, you'll be waiting a while, and I shudder to think of your poor, cold feet."

"Hmm, no. I should probably do that, yeah. I guess I'll do that this afternoon."

They were all still teasing Charlie as they went to the Great Hall for Breakfast. Professor McGonagall was handing out the timetables for the Winter Term. Charlie took his and scanned it. Potions was first thing, as was becoming tradition. Charlie wasn't looking forward to the dank dungeon, he was still feeling chilled from the cold floor. He wished they knew their schedule before the start of day. He would have put on an extra jumper or something. Charlie heard Barry groan, and saw that he had just looked at the schedule as well.

Barry turned his head and looked at the Head Table. Satisfied with what he saw, he looked at his friends. "Wonderful, another morning with my favourite bat. I wonder which one of us will be the first to lose Gryffindor points today."

"I'm sure it will be me, I'll either know too much, or not enough. I can't win in that class. I used to be ok, because I was quick to figure it out…now, even that is a problem." Charlie heaved a great sigh, "I'll be lucky to get an O.W.L in Potions."

Eric pushed the heavy door open, and they entered the dungeon. They took their places, set their cauldrons up, and waited for class to begin. They weren't waiting long when Professor Snape swooped to the front of the classroom. Barry looked toward Charlie and Eric, and rolled his eyes.

Professor Snape flicked his wand at the chalkboard. The students watched as the potion name, its ingredients, and the procedure appeared on the board. Charlie copied the potion onto a piece of parchment. They were brewing the Hair Raising potion, and Charlie was determined to make it through class without losing any house points, or receiving detention. He set about preparing his rat-tails. There was loud laughter across the room, and Charlie saw that Melrose Nudds was gesturing toward him. He was not going to let Nudds get to him. He made sure his potion ingredients were near him, so that Nudds couldn't cause trouble. Several of the Slytherins walked past his workstation, a clear detour from the direct route to the student supply area. Nudds must have told them not to do anything, though…because they made it through the class with out incident. Charlie was sure that Nudds and his friends were planning something, and Charlie knew he needed to be on his guard.

The next Duelling Club meeting was announced at lunch that day. They would be meeting at the end of the week, after dinner, on Friday. The Gryffindor boys discussed what spells they might use, and how Professor Oldham might split them. Charlie didn't care too much; he could work with almost anyone.

Charlie felt like he was just marking time until the end of the week. He paid attention in class, he did his homework, but he felt like he was just waiting until Friday. He practiced the Bat Bogey Hex a few times, but quit in frustration when he couldn't make anything appear to be flapping from Eric's face. He'd see if he could have at least have Eric or Tonks over during the summer, and see if his mum could teach them the hex.

Friday finally arrived, and Charlie and his friends made their way to the Defence classroom. Professor Oldham tapped them each on the shoulder with his wand as they entered. Charlie wasn't sure what that was all about; he didn't notice anything appearing on him. He went to the area where his classmates were waiting. The Slytherin students entered as a group, each being tapped on the shoulder as well.

Professor Oldham came to the front of the room, and turned to address the students of the club.

"You may have noticed that I tapped each of you on the shoulder as you came in the door. When I recite the incantation, you will find a piece of parchment in your hand. It will have a number on it. The other person in the room with that number will be your partner for the evening."

He waved his wand and said the spells incantation. Charlie looked at the number in his hand. He was number fourteen. He looked around the room and saw a Ravenclaw called Kathleen Cromwell waving her parchment bearing a number 14. Charlie breathed a sigh of relief that he wasn't partnered with Nudds today. He made his way across the room and joined Kathleen.

"We'll be working on basic shield charms today. You have all dealt with these in Defence Class, and you are all basically proficient at them. When it is your turn to curse your partner, you may use jinxes such as a jelly-leg curse, or a body bind. You may not use curses designed to injure your partner."

Charlie and Kathleen followed duelling procedure. He was able to block both the Stinging Hex and the Knee Reversing Hex. Professor Oldham walked about the room. He nodded his approval to Charlie and moved on. Kathleen was also able to shield Charlie's attacks with very little effort. On Kathleen's final try, she cast a Jelly Fingers Curse before he was able to put up a shield. His wand fell from his hand with a clatter. Professor Oldham announced the end of the meeting. He asked everyone to file by his desk to have any curses or jinxes lifted. Professor Oldham lifted the jinx, and Eric tossed his wand back to him.

They said goodnight to the girls and headed back to their Common Room. They settled into their favourite chairs by the fire. Charlie knew he had work that should be done, but he wasn't in the mood at all. He looked over at his brother, who was hard at work as usual. He was curious about how Bill was fitting all his courses in, but his brother got rather shirty when asked about it. Charlie decided it was best to leave Bill to his academic secrets. He realized he was falling asleep in the chair, when Eric threw a ball of parchment at him. He bid goodnight to Eric and Bill and headed up to the dorm.

Charlie woke the next morning and headed to breakfast with his friends. Gryffindor had Transfiguration after breakfast. They gathered in the classroom and immediately were at attention. Professor McGonagall was not a teacher who allowed any goofing off.

"Students, today, we will begin a bit of difficult Transfiguration. We will be turning a living object into a non-living object. Miss Blakemore, please hand a rabbit to each student."

Emmalina walked around the room handing a white rabbit to each student. Charlie held his firmly, so it wouldn't escape off his desk. Other students hadn't been so proactive, and could be seen diving about the room, trying to contain their rabbit.

"Once you've gotten your rabbit under control, you'll be transfiguring it into a pair of slippers."

Barry couldn't contain himself. He burst out in laughter as he teased Charlie.

"Charlie…now you won't have to worry about owling your mum…now you can just transfigure your own."

"Mr. Pullman, if you're finished? May I go on?"

"Yes, sorry Professor. I'll be quiet."

"As I was saying, you will be transfiguring the rabbits into slippers. The slippers do not need to be white; you may be creative in their colour. You will, however, be marked down if your slippers hop away on their own. The incantation and diagram of the wand motion are on the board. Please begin."

Charlie practiced the wand motion several times before he even attempted the transfiguration. Professor McGonagall stopped at his table, and corrected his wand movement. He recited the incantation and aimed his wand. He waved away the large puff of smoke and saw he was successful only in creating two live rabbits. Charlie managed to grab one, letting the other hop off the table. He didn't think he would master this spell in the allotted class period, and was prepared to be assigned homework. None of his classmates was able to perform the spell within the class period.

"Students, as none of you have been successful; you will need to continue to master this spell outside of class. I will make the rabbits and my classroom available to you every evening. If there are any questions, I will also be available. I'm expecting you all to have mastered this spell by the next class. You are dismissed."

Charlie and Eric went back to the Common Room. They had a free period before they needed to be in the Great Hall for lunch. They decided to take out their brochures for the classes for next year. Charlie sat at a table near the fire, and spread the literature out around him.

"Care of Magical Creatures, I'm definitely taking that…What about you, Eric?"

"I could get interested in that. Hagrid doesn't teach it, right?"

"No, it says here it's taught by a Professor Kettleburn. I'm writing it down right now, I'm sure I want to take it."

Eric looked over the courses again. "Will you be taking Muggle Studies? I don't expect I need to take that one."

Charlie thought for a minute before answering. "Nah, my father would love it if I did, but I'm really not all that interested in Muggles.

"Gee, thanks."

"You know what I mean, Eric."

"I know, just taking the Mickey. Anyway…what about Arithmancy?"

"I don't know…I'll have to talk to Mum, see what she says. We've still got a few weeks until the Easter Holiday."

The boys gathered up their literature and packed it away in their trunks again. They gathered what they needed for the afternoon and headed down to the Great Hall. Charlie sat at the table, filled his plate, and set about eating. He and Eric continued their conversation about what classes they were adding, and got input from their classmates as well. Charlie hoped that he would know what he wanted to take when the time came to choose.


	13. Quidditch and Classes

The winter passed quickly, and before Charlie knew it, Quidditch was beginning again. Mick had them on the Pitch three days a week, for several hours each session. Gryffindor wasn't first in the standings, but they weren't last, either. Charlie didn't think they would pull ahead, but he was going to do all he could to keep them out of the cellar.

Charlie still hadn't decided which classes he was going to add to his course schedule. He decided to ask all the older students he knew for advice. He figured that the Quidditch team was a perfect place to start. He started with Mick.

"Mick, I have to choose my classes for third year. D'you have any advice?"

"I only added two. Divination is usually an easy O.W.L. I took Muggle Studies and Divination. I got an O.W.L. in both of them…Kept them for N.E.W.T. level too."

Charlie filed the information away in his brain. "Thanks Mick, I appreciate it."

"Weasley, just make sure you don't take so much that you don't have time for Quidditch."

"I wouldn't do that, Mick. I love Quidditch; I don't want to miss out on that."

Next, he found Tegan and Naomh. They looked at him with raised eyebrows.

"Well, of course, you MUST take Divination. It's an easy O.W.L. Really, what's more fun than Professor Trewlany predicting the horrible death of one of your classmates?"

"Besides, in Divination, all you have to do is make stuff up…I mean, how is she going to really know what you're dreaming about." Naomh laughed, "Homework takes me ten minutes, fifteen tops. I just have to make sure I don't predict my own doom the same way twice."

Finally, he checked with David and Westin. They both agreed that Divination was an easy O.W.L. Charlie wasn't sure that he should take something that was just for an easy grade. However, making up his homework, and being imaginative did sound pretty intriguing. So far, he was sure about Care of Magical Creatures, and was almost convinced that Divination was the way to go for a second class. Charlie was aware that he could add more classes, but he didn't really want to overtax himself.

Practice started, and Charlie kicked off the ground. He was circling the Pitch, but his mind was more on the task of choosing classes than it was on the task of searching for the snitch. More than one, Mick shouted at him to get his mind back on the pitch, usually after he had been barely missed by either a bludger or another player. He came up beside Charlie on his broom.

"Weasley…you're a million miles away. Get your head back on the Pitch, before you get knocked off your broom, and land in the hospital wing. There's no time for you to heal from a 30 foot fall before the match on Saturday."

"Right…back on the Pitch." Charlie absentmindedly flew away from the surprised Captain.

Mick's whistle brought him back, actually grateful for the distraction. He hovered above the team for a while. Charlie really enjoyed watching Quidditch being played. The Gryffindor team really did play well together, unfortunately, in the recent past, not well enough to win the Cup. Charlie was hoping that the team would win the Cup while he was on the team. It didn't look good for Mick…he was leaving school at the end of this year. They weren't at the bottom of the standings, but it would take a miracle for them to win.

As he flew, he wondered if he would be good enough to be Captain of the Quidditch team. He wondered if he would be able to lead a team, if they would listen to them. He imagined the elation he would feel if, as captain, he could lead the team to winning the House Cup. He could almost picture his Quidditch kit with the letter C sewn on the front. He smiled at the mental picture, and then brought his attention back to the pitch. He flew a few circuits of the pitch, looking for the snitch. It wasn't long before he saw the glint of gold across the pitch. He leaned low on his broom and streaked across the pitch, reaching his hand out in front of him. He grabbed the snitch at the same moment that Mick blew the whistle to end practice.

"Good practice guys, Weasley…let's keep your mind on the game, though. We'll never win the match if you're flying around with your head in the clouds."

"Right, Captain….mind on the pitch, not in the clouds. I will."

The team wandered back to the castle together. The girls were still trying to convince Charlie that Divination was the way to go. He wasn't totally decided, but Tegan and Naomh certainly made it sound like it could be fun, and not too academically taxing. It might just fit the bill.

Charlie and Eric met Tonks and Peyton in the Library. It was one of the few places that they were able to sit together, do work and just spend time together. They found that if they sat in a very back corner, and really kept their voices down, that Madam Pince wouldn't bother them. They had their Herbology homework spread out around them, but they were discussing their options for O.W.L. classes. Tonks had already decided on the classes that she was going to add. She was taking three extra classes, and Charlie feared that she wasn't going to have any extra time to spend with them. Peyton was only adding two, but hadn't decided yet which ones.

"The girls on the Quidditch team were saying Divination was the way to go. Actually, everyone I talked to said to take Divination. They all said it was an easy O.W.L, and that the homework wasn't difficult either. They said they just make it up ten minutes before class starts."

Peyton raised her eyebrows in interest. "Really, homework's not difficult, easy O.W.L. That sounds pretty good. Now I just have to decide on one more."

"I'm know I'm taking Care of Magical Creatures and I'm pretty sure Divination."

Eric sighed deeply. "I still have no idea. I'm meeting with Professor McGonagall in a couple of days, so we can discuss the options. I don't want to choose the wrong things, and not be able to take the classes I need for N.E.W.T's, which we'll need when we leave Hogwarts."

Tonks looked surprised. "You mean we basically have to decide what we want to be when we grow up, I can't even decide what I want to eat for DINNER most nights"

Madam Pince marched over to them, irritation evident in her eyes.

"Children, I allow you to sit here and chatter, as long as you are quiet. You ceased being quiet fifteen minutes ago, and you haven't done a bit of homework. OUT…this isn't' a Common Room, and because you can't be respectful, I'll not allow you to treat it as one."

They gathered their belongings as quickly as they could, and hurried out. Charlie had a vague thought that they would have to find another place to spend time together. It occurred to him again, how unfair it was that there wasn't a place where friends from other Houses could spend time together. They said good-bye at the top of the staircase, and the girls headed down to their Common Room, while Charlie and Eric turned and headed back to Gryffindor Tower.

Saturday came quickly, and all thoughts of choosing classes were swept from Charlie's mind. He awoke to the sound of rain beating against the window of the dormitory. He groaned and rolled over, pulling his pillow over his head, hoping that when he opened his eyes, the rain would be gone, and they would have dry weather to play Quidditch. He slowly pulled the pillow off his head. The sound of the rain beating against the window was still there. Charlie resigned himself to playing Quidditch in foul weather, and climbed out of bed. He dressed quickly and joined his dorm mates at the Gryffindor table.

"Charlie, ready for the match? Nasty day for it, isn't it?"

"Thanks for pointing that out, Barry. It's going to be a nasty one today. I think we'll still do well…at least I hope we will."

Charlie quickly finished his breakfast. He never ate much before matches, nerves always kept his stomach in knots. He ignored Eric's attempts to push more food on him, merely waving his hand vaguely, and shaking his head.

"I've got to get to the Pitch, no time for more. You know…there's no need for you to sit in the rain and watch, stay in the castle where it's warm."

"Charlie, are you crazy? We never miss Quidditch. That's just wrong to even suggest" Barry rolled his eyes as he spoke.

"Fine, you're the ones who are going to end up sick, drinking Madam Pomfrey's Pepper-Up Potion, when you don't have too. I, on the other hand, have no choice."

Charlie headed down to the Pitch and pushed into the changing room. He put on his kit, and grabbed his broom. He was the first one there, so he sat down on the bench and waited for the team to come down. Mick was the first one in. He was closely followed by the rest of the team. They got dressed quickly, and waited for Mick's pre-game pep talk. He paced back and forth in front of them.

"All right…this is going to be a tough one. This is why I've never let you off practice in bad weather. The Ravenclaws wimp out in the rain, so we have the advantage. I want you to score, early and often. Charlie, catch the snitch as fast as you can…I don't want to be in this weather any longer than I have to be."

They gave a Gryffindor cheer, and filed out onto the Pitch. Charlie noticed that there weren't that many students watching. He saw his friends huddled together, trying to stay warm and dry. They waited for Madam Hooch's whistle. They kicked off into the air and Gryffindor was in immediate control of the Quaffle. Diane Conway was putting out a running commentary. Charlie paid close attention to what she was saying, because he couldn't see what was happening on the pitch.

"Gryffindor has control of the Quaffle. Tegan Rees to Naomh Vaughn to Lindsey Carlsey…back to Rees. Rees scores! Gryffindor is up ten to zero. Ravenclaw with control. Watch the Bludger…oh, Baldwin drops the Quaffle…can Vaughn grab it? She does…she passes it to Carlsey…she scores. Gryffindor is ahead twenty to zero."

Charlie flew around the Pitch, straining his eyes through the rain. He was hoping to see the snitch in short order, catch it, and end the game. He was cold and wet, and just wanted to be inside doing anything but playing Quidditch. Charlie suddenly realized that it would be nearly impossible to see the snitch, with no sunlight to cause a glint. He heard Diane call that Ravenclaw had scored, and he firmed his resolve to catch the snitch, soon. Gryffindor scored several more times, but Ravenclaw would win if they caught the snitch first. He scanned the pitch again, and saw the Ravenclaw Seeker streaking across the pitch. Charlie raced to catch up, but he was unable to. The Ravenclaw Seeker closed her hand around the Snitch just as Charlie sped past her.

The team landed in the middle of the pitch, and shook hands before hurrying to their changing rooms. They changed into dry clothes before listening to Mick ream them out for losing. Mick stepped in front of them and cleared his throat.

"I know you all think I'm angry with you…but you're wrong. You all flew as well as possible out there. You scored, I was quite impressed. It was just plain luck that the snitch zipped past the Ravenclaw Seeker, and they were able to chase it. Weasley, it's not a problem, there was no way you were going to see that thing, unless it flew in your face."

Charlie felt a surge of relief. He had felt that he let his team and his captain down. He was happy that Mick wasn't angry with him. He still felt that he had no business on the team sometimes, especially when he felt like he disappointed Mick.

"Now, all of you…up to the Hospital Wing for some Pepper-Up Potion…Captain's orders. We'll take a few days off from practice as well. What are you waiting for…GO!"

They all rushed out of the changing room, and walked as a team up to the Hospital Wing. After receiving their potions, they returned to Gryffindor Tower. Charlie joined Eric and his other classmates around one of the tables. They were back to looking at class brochures, worrying about choosing classes. Charlie was ready to choose his classes and be done with it. There were only a few weeks until Easter, when he would go home, and finalize his choices with his parents, and then they wouldn't have to worry about choosing classes again. Frankly, Charlie couldn't wait.


	14. Easter Break

A/N: I apologize for taking so long to get this up. Sometimes, unfortunately, life gets in the way. Things are slowing down here, so I won't be neglecting Charlie anymore.

* * *

Charlie and Eric met the girls in the Entrance Hall, and they made their way to the Hogsmeade station. They were excited to have a break for Easter, to get home to see their family. They were all excited to talk about their class choices with their parents, and be done with decision making for a while. They had two years before Career Counselling was to occur, and none of them was ready to think about THAT. The friends settled into their compartment, and prepared for the long ride back to London.

When the train arrived at Kings Cross Station, Charlie helped Tonks with her trunk, before grabbing his own. He disembarked from the train and immediately saw his mother and siblings gathered on the platform. He hurried over to them, anxious to get out of the station, and back home. With a flick of her wand, Charlie's mum shrunk the two trunks. Charlie realized that his dad wasn't there, and getting home would be a bit more difficult. He noticed that Bill had taken Ron tightly by the hand, and Charlie did the same with Ginny. Bill looked over at him with a knowing glance. It was better that Mum try to contain the twins; Charlie didn't think that he or Bill would be able to do it. Somehow, they made it back to the Burrow without incident, and Charlie, Bill and their Mum sighed in relief.

Charlie's mum called him into the kitchen as she was preparing the light supper. As he set about helping her prepare the sandwiches, he waited for her to talk about whatever it was that was on her mind.

"Charlie, dear…your father and I have been talking, and it's time that Ginny moves out of our room. She obviously can't share with any of you, so we needed a room for her. Your father and I have decided that you'll move into Bill's room with him. It won't be so bad, you're both really only here on holidays, anyway."

Charlie couldn't believe his ears. His room and the paddock were the only places he had to be alone in his over-crowded house. Now, his mum and dad were taking away the only place inside the house where he could be alone. He was hurt and angry.

"Why can't you move Percy and Ron together? Bill and I are the eldest; it's not FAIR that we should have to share."

"Charlie, you and your brother are gone most of the year anyway, it doesn't make sense to make Ron and Percy share. I'm sorry that you're upset, but this is they way it's going to be. Please take your trunk to your bedroom."

It was too much for Charlie. He grabbed his broom and headed outside. He ignored his mum asking where he was off too. He ignored Bill when he asked if he could come along. He ignored the twins when they showed up in the paddock with him. Charlie just wanted to be alone, and it felt like there was nowhere in the world where that could happen. He flew fast around the paddock, leaning low against the handle. The wind rushing over him seemed to blow the anger off him as well. When he had calmed down fully, he landed his broom, and headed back to the house. He knew he owed everyone an apology for his behaviour.

Charlie found his mum cleaning up after supper. He saw a few sandwiches sitting on a plate in the middle of the trestle table. He grabbed one and ate it quickly. He took another and held it in his hand while he formulated his thoughts into an appropriate apology.

"Mum, I'm sorry that I got so angry about sharing a room with Bill. I guess it took me a bit by surprise. I'll make the best of it, and I won't complain."

"I'm glad you've decided to be a good sport about it. You're a smart boy; I don't have to tell you again, that it's the only decision that makes sense. Now, finish your sandwich and go get cleaned up. You might want to check with your brothers, I know the twins' feelings were hurt when you ignored them."

Charlie found his brothers, and apologized to each of them. He took his trunk and brought it to his new room. He unpacked as much as he needed to, making sure his stuffed dragon was sitting on his bed. He noticed the parchment he had brought home for his parents to sign for classes. He took it in hand, and went to find his parents. He found them sitting in the lounge. He walked over and handed his father the parchment and literature that Professor McGonagall had given them.

"I'm to choose my elective classes for next year. I know I want to take Care of Magical Creatures, and I think I'm going to take Divination as well. Unless you have any suggestions."

Charlie's father looked over the parchment, and handed it to Charlie's mother. She also looked it over, before handing it back to Charlie.

"Do you think you'll enjoy Divination? It's not for everyone." Charlie's dad was always diplomatic. Charlie knew that his father didn't hold much stock in divination. "You might want to think about Muggle Studies. Muggles are fascinating, and it may do you well to learn how they can live without magic."

"Oh, Arthur, you know Charlie doesn't share your obsession with all things Muggle. Charlie, dear, if you think this is the course you want to take, then its fine with us. Have you given any thought to what you want to so after Hogwarts? Will Care of Magical Creatures and Divination help you along your path?"

"Mum, I don't know what I want to do when I grow up. I haven't really thought about it. It seems bizarre to me, that I have to make decisions about my future when I'm thirteen years old. Tonks was right, when she said that it's hard enough to decide what to eat for dinner, let alone make choices that might affect the rest of our lives."

"Well, dear, I'm sure you'll do fine, and if you want to take Care of Magical Creatures and Divination, that's fine with your father and me. Fill in the form, and we'll sign it."

Charlie grabbed a quill and the form, and filled it out quickly. He brought it back to his mum, who signed it right away. Charlie climbed the stairs to his room and put the form in his trunk, careful not to wrinkle it. He noticed that Bill was sitting on his bed, already surrounded by books and parchment. Charlie had been pleased that he had not been assigned much homework over the Easter Holiday. He hoped that it was just Bill's intense workload that had him loaded with homework, and that it wasn't indicative of how third year would be for everyone.

The next day, Charlie began to wish that he had been loaded with homework. It seemed that Bill was the only one of the Weasley children who hadn't been assigned chores to help their mum get ready for Easter Dinner. Mum had invited Auntie Muriel over for dinner, and Charlie knew the house had to be in perfect order. Charlie was sure that even if the house were in perfect order, Auntie Muriel would still find something to criticize. He and Percy were sent to the garden to begin the degnoming. Ron and Ginny were doing all the tidying in the house. The twins were supposed to be cleaning their room, but Charlie was sure they weren't doing that. Quite honestly, he didn't want to know WHAT they were doing. Charlie didn't mind helping, though. The less time Mum had to spend on cleaning and getting ready, the more time she had to spend on making their chocolate Easter eggs. That was always something in which to look forward.

Bill had set himself up at the kitchen table, and Charlie noticed for the first time the sheer number of textbooks that he had. Charlie had decided to take a break from tidying, and gathered what little homework had been assigned. He sat down with Bill, and opened his Transfiguration text. He looked at his brother again, and finally decided to ask him how he managed to sit for so many classes.

"Bill? How is it that you have so much homework?"

"I'm a Third Year; of course I've got more homework than you do."

"But you've got more classes too, I'm only adding two more, how many did you choose to take?"

"I've added enough. Doesn't really matter, does it? As long as I do well in my classes."

"There's really no need to get shirty. It's why I didn't ask you for advice. You've been a bit touchy about your classes since the beginning of the year. Forget I asked anything. Go about your business."

Charlie gathered up his homework, and headed to the lounge. He knew he would probably be harassed by the twins, or maybe Ron, but he didn't want to bother Bill any more. It wasn't long before Ron found him.

"Charlie? Do you think you could take me for a bit of a fly? We really have been working hard in here. I don't think Mum will mind if we take a break."

Charlie had just begun answering one of the Herbology questions on the homework assigned by Professor Sprout. He held up one finger, so Ron wouldn't think he was being ignored. Charlie had his tongue stuck slightly between his teeth in concentration. He tried to ignore the soft shuffling noise that Ron was making as he tried to wait patiently. It was only a moment later that he finished his thought and laid down the quill.

"Ok, Ron….I'm sorry. I just needed to finish my thought. I don't see why Mum would object to a fly. It has to be short, though. I don't have a LOT of homework, but I do have to get it done. Just go check with Mum, make sure it's ok, and I'll clean up my homework."

Ron went scampering off in search of their mum, and Charlie gathered his work together again. He sighed as he stowed them back in his trunk. Charlie really hated leaving his work for the last minute, but he really did enjoy flying with Ron too. It didn't take long before Ron was back in front of him, sporting a HUGE grin.

"Mum said we could go, but we couldn't stay out long. Lets GO, Charlie…lets GO."

Charlie got his broom out of the broom shed, and made sure that Ron was on securely, before he kicked off. He flew low and slow to the paddock, but allowed himself a little more freedom. The paddock had a lot more room, and not as many watching eyes. Ron's whole body was tight with excitement. Charlie had never gone this fast while Ron was on the broom. Charlie tapped on Ron's shoulder, and leaned close to his ear.

"You go ahead and steer now. I'm right here, I won't let anything happen…but I know you can handle it."

Charlie moved his hands, and Ron gripped the broomstick tightly. Charlie could feel the excitement rolling off Ron's back as he steered the broom around the paddock. He had slowed down the broom before giving Ron control, but not by a lot. Charlie noticed that Ron showed talent on the broom. He wondered if Ron would ever be interested in playing Quidditch, and what position he would favour.

Charlie tapped Ron again, and put his hands back on the broomstick. Ron lifted his off, and gripped it closer to his body…merely to hang on, not to steer. Charlie slowed the broom way down, and flew back to the broom shed. They were met by their mum, who had another list of chores that needed to be done.

Charlie felt like Easter Hols flew by more quickly than usual. He was sure it was because he had been so busy with his mum's chores, and then finishing his homework. He didn't have time to fly with the twins or with Ron again. He was still angry about having to share his room. If his mum and dad didn't have so many children, he wouldn't have to. He waved at his siblings, and climbed aboard the train. He settled into his seat, and heaved a huge sigh. He couldn't wait to get back to the castle. He heard the compartment door slide open, and knew his friends had found him. They chatted about their holiday, and compared their homework, finishing it if necessary. They were all surprised when they felt the train slow down, and pull into Hogsmeade Station.


	15. More Trouble with Nudds

Charlie, Eric, Tonks and Peyton made their way from the Station to the entrance of the castle. There wasn't much ceremony involved in the return to school after the Easter break, so they were all hopeful that they would be eating supper soon. They walked through the Entrance Hall together, then Charlie and Eric bid the girls good-bye at the Hufflepuff table. They walked across the Great Hall and took seats at the Gryffindor table.

Though Charlie really believed that nothing was better than his mum's cooking, he did enjoy the meals at Hogwarts as well. He wasn't always treated to his favourite foods at home, at the castle, it always seemed like the table was laden with all his favourites. There was always a roast beef of some kind, and potatoes with loads of gravy. He could always find his favourite vegetables, and there never seemed to be carrots near by. When it was time for pudding, he always found treacle tart, and trifle. Eric always seemed to be able to find his favourites as well. It was just another mystery of the castle.

Charlie and Eric finished their meals and made their way up to the Common Room. There was a notice on the board that stated that all Second Year Gryffindor students were required to meet in the Common Room after dinner. The boys decided not to go to the dorm, since they would just have to come right back down. They settled into their favourite chairs by the fire and waited.

"I still can't believe your parents are making you share a room now. It doesn't seem fair"

Eric was as upset for Charlie, as Charlie was for himself.

"I know. It hardly seems fair. Now, I don't have ANYWHERE to go to be by myself. It's a good thing that Bill and I get along, though. It would be worse if I didn't like Bill."

The slight trickle of students had slowly evolved into a mass horde pushing through the portrait hole. It was clear that dinner had ended. A few moments after the last student pushed through the opening, Charlie saw their formidable Head of House climb through. She stood, looking at the students, and cleared her throat.

"All Second Year students please bring forward your course selection sheets. You should have spoken with your parents, and they should have signed the sheet. If you did not do this, please owl your parents immediately, and request the forms back by return owl."

Professor McGonagall stood in front of a low table and the ten Second Year students filed by her, placing their parchment onto the table. She gathered them together, turned, and was out of the Common Room as quickly as she had appeared. Charlie and Eric looked at each other and shrugged.

"Fancy a game of Exploding Snap?"

Charlie got out the cards and called for Andrew and Barry to join them. The prefects came by several times to tell them to settle down, before sending them up to the dorm all together. Once there, they changed into their pyjamas, and talked until they were told to go to sleep by the prefects.

Charlie woke the next morning, and made his way to the Common Room. Mick met him at the bottom of the stairs, and handed him a parchment that had a schedule scribbled on it. Charlie looked at it, and then looked at Mick.

"Quidditch practice, four days a week? Mick, how am I going to do my homework? I mean, I'm not worried about getting all O's, but I don't want to get any T's either."

"You're a smart kid, Weasley. I have faith that you can handle Quidditch practice, AND classes. You'll make it work."

Charlie made his way to breakfast, grumbling under his breath about psychotic Quidditch captains. He was still grumbling when he sat down. He filled his plate with bacon and eggs, hoping that a hearty breakfast would improve his mood. Charlie wasn't hung up on doing perfectly in his classes, but he really didn't want to let his mum and dad down by doing poorly either. He knew that if he did poorly because of Quidditch, this would be the last year he played, and that wasn't a risk he was willing to take. Somehow, he'd manage to get it all done. While he was grumbling to himself, Eric joined him, and filched some bacon off his plate.

"Where is your head right now? You don't usually let me snatch food off your plate."

"Mick's gone mental, that's all. Practice four days a week. When am I going to get homework done, when am I going to sleep?"

"Charlie, you'll get through it. Even if you have to spend all day Sunday doing homework. I'll wait and do mine with you. You'll be able to relax when Quidditch season is over. Now, don't worry so much about Quidditch, worry about Potions. It's off to the dungeons now."

They gathered their rucksacks and walked quickly to the dungeons. Charlie had heard rumours that Nudds was thinking about starting trouble again. Charlie had spent the entire winter avoiding him. As long as he didn't try to start trouble in Potions, Charlie was sure that he could handle anything that Nudds could dish out to him. He and Eric set their cauldrons over the flame, and waited for Professor Snape to give them the instructions for the day.

Somehow, they made it through the class with no incident, from either Professor Snape, or Melrose Nudds. Charlie knew that it might only mean that it would be worse later, but he would take it for what it was. He hurried to Herbology, managing to avoid any catastrophe. He couldn't hide the smile when he saw Tonks and Peyton already at their worktable. Charlie often thought that Tonks could brighten even the darkest of moods. It was very fortunate that they had Herbology directly after Potions. They worked together, pruning their Abyssinian Shrivelfigs, in silence. Charlie liked that the four of them worked so well together. They didn't feel the need to fill silence with mindless chatter. The hour passed quickly, and class was over. Peyton was best at Scourgify, so she got them all cleaned up before they headed back to the castle for lunch.

Charlie was famished, and quickly filled his plate when he heard a chair scrape in the front of the room. Almost as one, the entire student body turned toward the noise. Professor Oldham had risen from his seat and clapped his hands three times. Charlie was sure he had everyone's attention.

"We will resume Duelling Club for whoever is interested. Second Year students will be meeting Friday evening at half past seven, in the same classroom we've used before."

Professor Oldham continued with the meeting times for the older students. Charlie stopped paying attention, as he already had the information that he needed. The other boys at the table started chattering about the club starting again, and what spells they would be using. Charlie listened as he finished his lunch, but had his mind on finishing his homework before Quidditch Practice that evening. He finished his lunch, and rose from the table.

"I'll see you in Transfiguration. I'm going to use the free period to get started on the homework. I'm still now sure how I'm going to squeeze everything in. I guess free periods aren't going to be all the free for me."

"I'll come too, Charlie. It won't hurt to get a start too." Eric waved at their friends as he also left the table.

They passed the Hufflepuff table, and waved to the girls. Charlie pointed to his rucksack as an answer to Tonks' raised eyebrow. She nodded, and waved again. Eric tapped Charlie's shoulder, and discreetly pointed to the Slytherin table. Nudds had left his table, and was walking toward them. Charlie didn't think that Nudds was actually stupid enough to try anything in the middle of the Great Hall, but he wasn't sure. He looked at the head table, and hoped that if Nudds decided to make trouble, someone other than Snape would be watching.

"Where are YOU going, Weasley?"

"What's it to you? I didn't realize I had to check with you before I did something."

"Weasley, someday, you'll regret that smart mouth of yours. I'm not someone you want as an enemy."

"I'm not looking for enemies; I'm really just looking to do my homework. I have no beef with you at all. Now, if you'll excuse me…"

Melrose Nudds looked at Charlie's retreating figure with a glare of hatred and frustration. Charlie knew that Nudds had been trying to provoke him; Charlie wasn't going to give him the satisfaction. Due to the verbal altercation with Nudds, some of his free period was lost. He decided to work on his essay for Defence. They were covering Banshees. Charlie was sure he could finish the ten required inches of parchment before he needed to leave for Transfiguration. Eric was sitting beside him, occasionally, muttering and moving the book away from Charlie. Break was soon over, and they rushed to Transfiguration.

The week passed in a similar manner. Charlie went to his classes, and spent free periods doing homework. The other second year Gryffindor students relieved him from note taking duty in History of Magic, to give him a little more time to get things done, or take a nap. When he wasn't working on schoolwork, he was at Quidditch practice. Charlie was exhausted, and looked forward to a break of sorts in Duelling Club.

Friday evening, Charlie and Eric were joined by Barry, Andrew and The Girls as they entered the Duelling Club classroom. The procedure was the same, they were tapped on the shoulder, and the incantation was given to reveal their partners. Charlie's heart fell when he realized that his number matched Melrose Nudds. Charlie still didn't really know WHY Nudds had such animosity towards him. It really didn't make sense to Charlie. He just did his best to avoid him, and try not to set him off.

He saw the glint in Nudds eye as they came to face each other. Charlie held his wand at the ready, and waited for Professor Oldham's count. Before the professor could reach three, Nudds had yelled _Locomotor Mortis_. Charlie ducked out of the way, and the curse hit a Hufflepuff called Denise Harding. Charlie watched in horror as her legs stuck tight together, and she toppled over onto the floor. Charlie gasped when he saw she wasn't moving.

"All students, back to your Common Rooms NOW. Mr. Nudds, please go and wait for me in my office."

The students didn't move. Charlie saw that everyone was staring at Denise. He saw Tonks and Peyton clutching their hands. Charlie wanted to go over to them, but he felt as if he was glued to where he was standing.

"She's going to be fine, I told you to go to your Common Rooms" Professor Oldham had released the curse, but it was clear that Denise still wasn't moving. Charlie tried not to be worried. He was sure there wasn't an injury that Madam Pomfrey couldn't heal. The students began to file out of the classroom. Charlie made his way to The Girls. Eric was already there, holding Peyton's hand. Tonks reached out to Charlie, and he took her hand. They walked together to the opening of the Hufflepuff Common Room, and then went back to their Common Room. They could hear the chattering in the Common Room before they were even through the hole.

Charlie and Eric settled next to the fireplace. They were both hoping for some word on Denise before they had to go to bed. They didn't wait long. Professor McGonagall entered the Common Room.

"I knew that you would all want to know that Miss Harding will recover fully, and is resting comfortably in the Hospital. It is also important to note that Duelling Club has been cancelled. Now, off to bed with you all. It's been a long day for you all."


	16. The End of the Year

A/N: Sorry for the delay. Back in July, my laptop was stolen, as I had posted previously. It's just taken a while to get back into the groove. I lost quite a bit of backstory...names I had designated for people, quidditch match scores..etc. It was disheartening to lose all that. I think I'm back in the groove, and I don't plan to neglect poor Charlie any more.

* * *

Charlie realized that his final hurdle of second year was the last Quidditch Match. It was clear that Gryffindor would not be in the running for the Quidditch Cup, but the team still intended to get out on the Pitch, and give it their all. Once Mick had sat down and really crunched the numbers, realizing that a Cup win was out of reach, he dropped practice to once a week on the Pitch, and once a week indoor planning. Charlie was sure he had heard the entire team sigh with relief when Mick told them.

Charlie fell into a steady routine of studying, Quidditch, and hanging out with his friends. He seemed surrounded by people at all times. This was, perhaps, a good thing. Nudds hadn't forgotten that he would have been in a lot less trouble, had Charlie not ducked. Most students thought Nudds had gone too far, so Charlie didn't have much to fear as long as there were other students about. Charlie also believed that Nudds would lay low, at least until after the summer. Charlie had heard rumours that they had discussed expulsion, but he dismissed them as just that, rumours. As mean as Nudds was, Charlie couldn't believe that he had tried to hurt anyone intentionally. All Charlie believed was that Nudds had wanted to come out ahead in the duel, hoping to make himself look good, and make a fool of Charlie.

Charlie spent quite a bit of time with his fellow Gryffindors, learning all they could remember about Goblin Rebellions and Giant Wars. Charlie had to admit, that in the hands of another instructor, the subject matter COULD be quite interesting. After doing all the readings, and going over the collected notes, Charlie felt confident that he would be able to pass the coming exam acceptably. He spent a bit less time revising his other subjects. He had paid more attention in his classes, and didn't feel quite so far behind.

He also spent quite a bit of time on the Quidditch Pitch. Less for practice, more for sheer joy and release. They all knew they couldn't win the cup, so practices were more like pick-up games. Sure, they were going to try and win, any points they scored would help towards their House. Practices were fun, and, because the weather was nice, they often had an audience, not just their own housemates, but from Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw as well.

The final match of the year was between Gryffindor and Slytherin. Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw had already flown their final games, and their point total was set. It would take a miracle for Gryffindor to overtake Slytherin. The difference in the Quidditch totals going into the final match was Slytherin with 620 points, followed by Gryffindor with 250 points. The team went to breakfast on the day of the final match, spirits high. They all felt so comfortable that they all actually ate breakfast. Eric looked at Charlie with raised eyebrows, as Charlie filled his plate.

"No nerves today, eh, Charlie?"

Charlie swallowed a large mouthful of eggs before replying, "Dunno what you mean."

Eric chuckled. "You never eat more than toast on game day…you claim you're too nervous."

"Nothing to be nervous about, we can't win the Cup. We're just going out there to have fun. If we beat the Slytherins, that's just a bonus."

Mick called the team, and they all started for the Quidditch changing rooms.

"OK, team. We can't win the cup. It would have been nice to be able to win the cup while I was Captain, but that isn't to be. So…in this final match of the season….go out there and have fun. "

They all gave a quick cheer, and headed out to the Pitch. Madam Hooch sent them all into the air, and she released the Bludgers as she tossed up the Quaffle. Charlie was pleased the weather was good; he hoped never to have to play in weather like the match against Ravenclaw. He circled the Pitch, feeling almost as if he were back home at the Burrow. He listened for the commentary, trying to monitor the score. He was hoping to see the Snitch quickly, so the game could end without too many points gained for Slytherin. Any points gained in the match would still help their House. Gryffindor had scored several times, while David had made some spectacular saves, keeping the Slytherin score low. Charlie wondered if it was the lack of pressure that had Gryffindor doing so well. The chasers kept scoring; they kept their advantage over Slytherin. Charlie continued to scan the Pitch, hoping to see the Snitch, so he could end the game. He circled the Pitch several times, when he saw a golden glint to his left. As Charlie was making a quick tally of the score, the Snitch streaked away, and he lost sight of it in the sun. He wasn't too worried, the score stood at Gryffindor in the lead with fifteen goals. Slytherin had scored nine.

Play continued and Charlie heard Diane Conway announce three more goals for Gryffindor, and another goal for Slytherin. Charlie could see that both teams were beginning to get tired. He scanned the Pitch for the Snitch. He felt a whisper of a breeze pass by his head, and turned, the Snitch directly by his head. As he reached out for it, it streaked upward, almost as if it were mocking him. Charlie followed it, ready to end the match. With his hand outstretched, he closed his fingers around the Snitch, ending the game. The team landed, and headed to the Changing Room, the deafening roar of the crowd behind them.

Charlie could see Mick doing the maths in his head as he turned to face his team for the last time as Captain.

"We didn't win the Cup, but you all made a valiant effort out there. If my calculations are correct, we'll be finishing the Quidditch Cup contest with 600 points, Slytherin will have just over 700. Even though we didn't win the Cup, we CRUSHED Slytherin in their final match of the year. They'll have to stew over that all through the summer hols. I've been proud to be your Captain, and I'm sure you'll do great under whoever is chosen to lead you next year."

The team all busied themselves in shedding and stowing their kits, pointedly ignoring the wetness that had appeared in the corners of Mick's eyes. Charlie took a breath, ready to ask if Mick was all right, but he caught Tegan's look that told him he should just leave it alone. He finished up, and headed outside to meet Eric and The Girls. It was too nice to go back into the castle, so they settled under a tree next to the lake.

"I can't believe the year is almost finished. It seems strange that the summer feels so long, when it's only three months long."

Tonks looked over at Charlie and rolled her eyes. "Summer always goes by too fast. Before you know it, it's back to school. How is it that you want to be HERE more than at home?"

Charlie blushed. There were many reasons he would rather be at school than at home. Three of them were sitting with him under the tree. It was crowded at home; he didn't have his own space. As always, when these thoughts crossed his mind, Charlie also felt guilty for thinking them. He wished he hadn't said anything.

"It's just that I miss my friends when I'm at home. You'll come and visit again, right Tonks? Eric, maybe we can figure out a way for you to come too…and Peyton. That might make the summer bearable."

"I'd love to visit. I just don't know how I'd get to your house."

Tonks sat bolt upright. "FLOO POWDER!"

They all looked at her as if she had lost her mind. Charlie saw Peyton roll her eyes. Charlie wondered what the dorm in Hufflepuff was like. Tonks could be so random; it was hard to keep up.

"What about it, Tonks?" Charlie waited for clarification.

"Can't Eric use floo powder? His parents have to be able to get into the Leaky Cauldron; they have to, to get to Diagon Alley. What if they meet someone there and Eric can Floo to your house?"

"Tonks, you're BRILLIANT! I'll ask Mum straight away, when you can come for a visit."

They sat under the tree for the remainder of the afternoon. They all had revising to do, but none of them really wanted to do it. Charlie resolved really to get started in the morning. Eric's stomach alerted them to the time. They all headed into the Great Hall, Charlie and Eric left The Girls at the Hufflepuff table.

Charlie listened to his Housemates recount the Quidditch match. He realized that this game was much more exciting to watch, than it was to play. Normally, Charlie just hovered above the game, waiting and watching. Occasionally, a Bludger would come out of nowhere, and he would have to dodge it, but that was it, until someone spotted the Snitch. He had never really thought about it before. He listened to the chatter again, this time with more interest.

"Did you see the save that David made? How can he cover all three rings at once? It's like his arms are ten feet long or something."

"Tegan shot that Quaffle almost halfway across the Pitch…if I didn't know better; I'd have thought it was charmed."

"Well, the Slytherins are screaming about that, anyway. Madam Hooch is testing the Quaffle right now. It won't show anything."

"Speaking of Tegan, what do you think she's going to do, once Mick leaves Hogwarts?"

The conversation drifted off into who was dating who and other such nonsense for which Charlie had no use. He turned to Eric. Eric was examining something very closely. Charlie peered over his arm and saw the exam timetable. They were scheduled for one exam per day, with the exception of Wednesday, when they also had Astronomy. Their first exam was Potions. Charlie really didn't know if that was a blessing, or a curse. "Potions exam first, hardly seems fair."

Eric looked a bit green. "I think it's better to just get it over with. I think I'm most worried about Transfiguration. That's in the middle of the week. Plenty of time to revise, right?"

"Right, Eric. No worries. I'll help you revise. As long as you catch me up on History of Magic. We'll do just fine."

The boys headed up to the dorm, ready to spend their evening revising for Potions class. As their classmates trickled in from the Great Hall, they all began quizzing each other, and reciting potion ingredients and their uses. Charlie almost felt confident that he would do well on the exam. It depended on Professor Snape's mood he was sure. The Prefects began sending the first year students up to bed, and Charlie decided to turn in early as well. He gathered up his belongings, bid his classmates good night, and climbed the stairs to his dormitory.

All Charlie wanted was a good night's sleep. He wanted to make sure that he was well rested in order to spend the next day revising for Potions. Unfortunately, his sleep was plagued by nightmares. In one, he forgot to go to the dungeon for his Potions exam. In another, he was unable even to make a feather float. In a third, he couldn't identify a single plant in the greenhouse. When Eric woke him in the morning, he didn't feel any more rested than he had the night before.

Eric had told him not to worry so much. Charlie knew he should have listened to Eric. At the end of each exam, Charlie was confident that he had done well enough. He knew he wouldn't get all "O's" but he was sure that he had earned at least "A's" on all of his exams. He joined Eric and The Girls on the lawn by the lake every afternoon. As usual, Peyton was discussing each question on every exam, and as usual, Charlie, Eric and Tonks were pointedly ignoring her. The week passed quickly, exams scores were handed to them, and they boarded the train for the ride home.


	17. Long Hot Summer

The beginning of the summer passed in a blur. Charlie and Bill were still working on the logistics of sharing a room. It seemed odd to Charlie that it was so effortless to share with four other boys at Hogwarts, but sharing with his brother took planning and an inked line down the centre or the room. He had been sure the line would last only as long as it took his mum to see it, but she just heaved a heavy sigh, and ignored it whenever she went into their room. Charlie felt a little sad that his relationship with Bill had come to this. They had been best of friends when they were younger. Charlie hadn't realized how different they were until they had both headed to Hogwarts.

Charlie was spending quite a bit of time with Fred and George. They were really improving their Beater skills, and Charlie enjoyed flying and playing Quidditch with them. Ron enjoyed flying with Charlie too, and hoped to get his own broomstick for his birthday. Most of all, much to his surprise, Charlie enjoyed spending time with Ginny. She was weeks away from turning five, and was one of the most determined people Charlie knew. Whatever she put her mind to, she did.

It was one of the hottest summers that Charlie could remember. Even his mum was complaining, and charming paper fans to cool her when she was working in the kitchen. All of the Weasley children spent most of their time by the small pond on their property. Charlie and Bill decided it was time for Ginny to learn to swim, and by the end of the afternoon, she was dog paddling, and trying to keep up with her older brothers.

"Charlie, can you teach me how to dive? I want to learn how to dive."

Charlie had a hard time saying no when Ginny made her eyes big and pleading. He tried to figure out how to explain, and convince her that the pond wasn't deep enough. He was pretty sure his mum would kill Bill and him if Ginny got hurt.

"Gin Gin, the water isn't deep enough to dive. When you're a little better at swimming, you can JUMP of the dock, but you can't dive…you'll hit your head on the bottom."

"Charlie…you're no fun, I'll bet Fred and George will teach me!"

"Ginny, that's because they don't think about what happens when you hit the bottom. Thinking things through isn't their strong suit."

Charlie pressed his lips together, trying to stop the laugh from bursting out. Ginny looked at him with such hurt and anger, he was sure she was going to blow something up. Her brow was furrowed and her eyes narrowed. Charlie looked around to see what was going to blow up. He wasn't disappointed. A moment later, with a bang, the end of the dock was sinking slowly into the pond.

"Percy…better go tell Mum, she'll be able to put it right."

Bill and Charlie rounded up the boys, and Bill took Ginny by the hand and headed back up to the house. She was still glaring at Charlie, so Charlie decided he'd be better off leaving her alone. They passed their mum as she bustled down to the dock. Charlie heard her muttering, and was sure they were going to get an earful when she got back to the house. Percy had settled in the lounge with a book, and Charlie knew that they wouldn't be hearing from him for the rest of the afternoon. Ginny had stormed to her room to sulk some more. Charlie was sure she knew she had overreacted, and was now more embarrassed than upset.

"Bill, d'you think Mum is going to be angry with US?"

"Um, Charlie…I didn't make Ginny blow anything up…That was all you."

"All I did was told her that she couldn't dive into the pond. It's not like I lied to her or anything."

"No, you didn't do anything wrong. I don't think Mum will be angry. Why are you worried about it anyway?"

"Well, I kind of wanted to invite Eric and The Girls over. I'm sure she won't let me if she thinks I did something wrong."

Charlie looked at Bill as they heard the kitchen door slam. Charlie was waiting to hear what his mum's voice sounded like when she called them to the kitchen.

"CHARLIE, BILL….KITCHEN…NOW!"

They ran down the stairs, skidding to a stop at the trestle table. Charlie turned to look at his mum, hoping that his face was set in an innocent expression. Just because he didn't do, anything wrong didn't meant that he wasn't going to be in trouble. He also knew enough just to be quiet until his mum was finished with whatever it was she had to say.

"So, tell me boys, how did half my dock end up sinking in the pond?"

"Mum, it was my fault…kind of. Ginny wanted to learn how to dive, and I told her I couldn't teach her there. She said she was going to ask Fred and George, and I suggested she not do that. I guess she got mad that she wasn't going to get her way. She kind of blew up the dock. It wasn't really her fault either."

"Do you have anything to add, Bill?"

"Nope, I was watching the twins, making sure they didn't kill themselves or anyone else. I didn't see what happened."

"That's all boys. Is Ginny still sulking in her room? I'll go up and see her. I'm sure she thinks she's going to be in trouble."

Charlie was thrilled that Mum wasn't mad at him. He was going to ask her if his friends could visit. He would wait until tomorrow to ask, though. Just in case she decided that, she really was upset. Charlie found Fred and George, who were in their room, upset because their swim had been cut short.

"Come on, let's go for a fly."

Two identical faces lit up with pleasure at that simple sentence. They ran down ahead of Charlie. He heard them at the broom shed before he had even reached the kitchen. He invited Percy and Bill, but only to be polite. Charlie knew that neither one of them would join them. He saw Ron's expectant face, and stopped.

"Ronnie, I'll bring you flying later…if we don't get up in the air today, I promise I'll bring you tomorrow."

Ron's face shone brightly. "OK, Charlie. I won't pester you. I'll be ready when you are."

The twins were already at the paddock when Charlie grabbed his broom. He didn't see the chest of Quidditch balls, and he assumed that the twins had somehow already dragged it to the paddock. He mounted and kicked off into the air gracefully. Charlie reached the paddock and saw that Fred and George had already released the Bludgers, and were trying to hit each other with them. Charlie released the Snitch. He watched the twins for a minute and decided they probably shouldn't be attempting to maim each other with Quidditch balls.

"Oy, Fred, George…I'm lucky that I didn't get in trouble for Ginny's little explosion today…let's not try and kill each other up there. Mum'll have my head, and you two won't be allowed to play."

They looked at each other with a look of shock that was so comical that Charlie had to laugh. They immediately showed more caution in hitting the Bludgers. Charlie gave them a thumbs up, and started to look for the Snitch. After having caught and released the Snitch several times, Charlie decided to bring Ron out for a quick fly before supper.

Early the next week, two owls arrived, carrying booklists for Bill and Charlie. This was exciting for more than one reason. First was that booklists meant a trip to Diagon Alley for shopping. Second was that his mum had agreed to a visit from Eric and The Girls. They would all meet in Diagon Alley, and come back to the Burrow. Eric would Floo back to the Leaky Cauldron with Mr. Weasley after the evening meal, while The Girls would Floo home.

The morning of the shopping trip dawned, and Charlie was the first one up and dressed. He made sure that Ginny and Ron were ready, and then went to wake up Fred and George.

"Charlie, settle down. It doesn't matter what time we get there, you've set a meeting time with your friends, and getting there early isn't going to make it come any faster."

"Right, Mum. I'm sorry. I'll calm myself. I'm just excited. I miss my friends."

"I know Charlie, I understand. Just settle yourself; you're going to drive us all barmy."

Charlie sat in the lounge with a book while he waited for his family. By mid morning, all the Weasleys were fed, dressed and lined up at the fireplace, ready to Floo to The Leaky Cauldron. Bill was to go first, followed by Ginny, Percy and Charlie. Charlie thought that Mum hoped that by sending Fred and George last, and directly following them, that it might keep them in line. Charlie wasn't sure that would make much of a difference.

He heard them before he saw them. Tonks and Peyton came around the corner, giggling, with Eric in tow. After shaking Eric's hand, and giving each of the girls a hug, they took off toward Flourish and Blotts, to get their schoolbooks. Charlie didn't need many; he was able to use several of Bill's old books. After the Apothecary, to refill their Potion's kits, the foursome sat down at Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour. They finished their ice cream, and hurried back to The Leaky Cauldron to meet the rest of Charlie's family.

Mrs. Weasley sent the twins through the Floo first, then Bill. Ginny and Percy followed, and the four friends clamoured through the fireplace. By the time Mrs. Weasley made it to the fireplace in the Burrow, Charlie and his friends were already headed out to the back garden.

They spent the afternoon lazing by the pond. Peyton nagged them all a bit about their summer homework. Charlie was pleased to be able to tell her that he had finished. Tonks merely stuck her tongue out at Peyton. Suddenly, Tonks leapt to her feet, and tugged Charlie to his.

"I brought my broom…let's go flying"

Charlie looked at Peyton and Eric. "We've got extra brooms, d'you want to fly around the Paddock?"

When they agreed, Charlie ran up to the house to secure two more brooms. After asking his mum which brooms to use, he went to the broom shed and took his dad's broom and Bill's broom. He grabbed his own as well, and ran back to the paddock. He tossed Eric and Peyton their brooms, and mounted his. He noticed that Tonks were already in the air, so he kicked off and took off after her. Peyton and Eric were right behind them. They raced across the paddock, and played tag in the air. The afternoon passed quickly. Charlie noticed Bill coming across the paddock.

"Charlie, Mum says it's time to come to the house. Dad will be home soon, and it will be time to eat."

The foursome landed and headed back to the house. Charlie's mum had made a cold supper of sandwiches and fruit. They all ate heartily. Tonks and Peyton helped Mrs. Weasley clean up the dishes. Mr. Weasley looked at his watch.

"Time to go, Eric. Don't want your parents hanging out on the pavement in front of the Leaky Cauldron."

They said their good byes, and Eric followed Charlie's father into the fireplace. The Girls waited to floo until his father returned, to prevent any Floo accidents. As soon as he returned, they said thank you again, and took their turn in the fireplace.

Charlie spent the last week of summer finishing up on homework, flying with the twins and Ron, and playing with Ginny. He also spent some time with Bill, playing chess and exploding snap. He had kept in contact with his friends, and they had made plans to meet on the train. Before he knew it, the family was headed to Kings Cross Station, ready to begin another year at Hogwarts.


	18. First Days Back

As always, Tonks had gotten to the train first, and had secured a compartment for the friends. Charlie dragged his trunk onto the train and heaved it into the overhead rack. He noticed that Tonks was sitting with her feet resting on her trunk.

"Would you like me to stow that for you?"

"You don't have to, but it'll be in the way here."

Charlie rolled his eyes at her. "You could have just said, 'yes, thank you.'"

Tonks' response was cut short by the door sliding open. Eric had met Barry on the platform, and they entered the compartment together. The settled themselves into their seats after stowing their trunks as well. Peyton was the last to join them.

For the first time, Charlie's mum had packed snacks for him to bring on the train. He knew that money was tight, but he hadn't realized that pocket money was that much of a stretch. He had asked Bill about it, and Bill had told him that Mum and Dad had stopped giving him pocket money as well. Charlie wondered if the change was because his mum and dad needed to start saving Galleons because Percy, then the twins would be starting Hogwarts in the next few years. Charlie knew that Hogwarts was expensive and he didn't mind going without in order to help, but it was a little hard to pull out a sandwich, when his friends were pulling out pocket money for the trolley.

"Nothing for you, Charlie?" Tonks raised her eyebrow at him.

"No, Mum packed me some sandwiches."

Barry looked over at them, and tossed Charlie a Chocolate Cauldron. "We'll share. Trust me; we can't make you eat a smashed, soggy sandwich."

Charlie gave Barry a grateful, yet slightly embarrassed look. He really didn't want to take charity, but he didn't want to eat a smashed sandwich either. They all started to laugh as they tossed sweets into Charlie's lap. Charlie forgot to be embarrassed as he joined in with their laughing.

The train ride passed quickly amid laughter, Exploding Snap and the obligatory teasing. The Girls headed out to change into their uniforms. The boys needed only to turn their backs on each other for a moment, and by the time Tonks and Peyton arrived back at the compartment, they were tying ties and donning robes. Moments later, they felt the train lurch into the station.

Charlie waved at Hagrid as he made his way to the carriages. He always thought it a bit funny that the first person the first years saw when they arrived at Hogwarts was Hagrid. Hagrid was quite scary, until you got to know him. Charlie could still hear Hagrid's bellowing voice as he climbed into the carriage. The carriages all started moving slowly, towards the castle. It didn't have quite the same effect as arriving at the castles by boat, but it was still impressive.

The students all filed into the Great hall, and sat at their House Tables. Charlie looked over, and caught sight of Tonks' pink hair. She caught his eye, and gave him a wink and a wave. Charlie smiled back, and then brought his attention to the First Years being led into the room. In a few moments, the Sorting Hat would sing. It was always amusing to see the First Years faces when it did. He knew his jaw felt like it was on the floor when he saw it the first time. He listened to the song, and cheered for each student sorted into Gryffindor. Professor Dumbledore gave start of term notices. Charlie laughed at all the Zonko's products that were now banned. After what seemed like hours, the Feast appeared on the table.

Charlie filled his plate with all his favourites. It seemed each year was the same. The table seemed to know what each student liked to eat, and it seemed to appear, unendingly. Not for the first time, Charlie wondered what kind of magic could do that. He knew there were kitchens, the Hufflepuff Dormitory entrance was next to the kitchens. It just seemed that the never-ending parade of favourite foods was, well, magical.

The Prefects began gathering the First Years, shepherding them to the Dormitory. Charlie, Eric and their dorm mates followed behind. Staying close to the First Years was the quickest way to get the password for the portrait. People who lagged behind often wound up waiting outside the Fat Lady for someone to come along who had already been told the password. Barry had been that person last year, and he was determined never to be left in the corridor again.

The friends climbed the familiar stone staircase to their dormitory. Their trunks were already sitting against their beds. They quickly donned their pyjamas and climbed into their four posters. None of the boys was ready to pull their draperies yet, and they chatted late into the night. They were careful to be very quiet, so the prefects would have no reason to check on them. The first shards of pink were coming through the window when the boys finally drew their curtains and fell asleep.

Charlie woke to a pounding on their door. He pulled his pillow over his head and the covers over his head for good measure. He remembered thinking that staying up so late wasn't a good idea, but the pull of catching up with good friends was much stronger than the need for sleep. Charlie was regretting that now. The pounding wasn't stopping, and Charlie groaned as he rolled out of bed. His friends were groaning as well, and Charlie heard the soft slapping of feet against the stone floor.

"Come on, boys. If you don't get down to breakfast, you won't get your class lists, and you'll miss your first class. I'd have thought better of Third Years. Get UP."

Charlie heard Barry muttering as they pulled on their uniforms. Andrew cursed as he looked for his missing shoe. Charlie and Eric left the other three boys behind and headed to the Great hall. Charlie waved at Tonks, already sitting with toast and a mug of steaming coffee. He chuckled to himself; Tonks' hair wasn't shocking pink. He wouldn't be surprised to find out that the Hufflepuff Girls were up as late as he had been. Tonks always seemed to have trouble metamorphing when she was tired.

Professor McGonagall walked between the Gryffindor table and the Hufflepuff table, handing out timetables to the Gryffindor Students. Charlie glanced at his to determine what class was right after breakfast. He was relieved that he had Divination first. Charlie hated when Potions was the first class. He finished his breakfast, and hurried to the dorm to get his books before class.

Charlie reached The North Tower with time to spare. He decided to look over his timetable more thoroughly. As usual, Herbology was to be held with the Hufflepuffs. That made Charlie smile. He was always happy to spend time with Tonks and Peyton. His eyes drifted further down the parchment, and he let out an audible groan. They had Potions with the Slytherins, again.

Charlie saw movement across the circular room. Amid all the poufs, scarves, and hangings, he had thought he was quite alone, waiting for the rest of the class to arrive. A thin woman wearing scarves and bangles emerged from an armchair across the room. He assumed this was Professor Trelawney, though he had never seen any professor who looked as eerie and spooky as this one. Peyton appeared through the trapdoor, and joined Charlie. Together, they watched as the room filled with Third Year students from every House. Charlie was pleased to see that Nudds was not one of the students in the class.

Charlie and Peyton listened as Professor Trelawney detailed what she "Saw" the course entailing. Charlie rolled his eyes at Peyton as she stifled a giggle. He wondered if Dumbledore thought she was for real, or if he had just wanted to fill the position. He was beginning to feel quite drowsy, from both the heat and fumes, and because he had stayed up far too late. Peyton elbowed him in the ribs several times to keep him from nodding off. A gasp and a high-pitched squeak brought the entire class to attention. Professor Trelawney was pointing at a Ravenclaw, her eyes wide.

"wha…what is it, Professor?"

"Oh, no…it's far too horrible. I fear my Inner Eye has seen something too dreadful to share." Professor Trelawney flung her arm across her forehead in a most dramatic fashion. "No, no…It's better if you know. I'm so sorry to say, that you my dear, won't be finishing the term in this class."

"Oh, no, Professor, I don't plan on dropping the class. I'm quite interested in Divination."

"I didn't say you'd be dropping the class…"

Professor Trelawney's prediction was cut short by the signal bell. The class gathered their belongings and descended the ladder from the classroom. Charlie noticed that the Ravenclaw student looked quite shaken, and he made his way over to her.

"I don't think that she really saw you dying or anything. I'm sure she does this all the time, to create drama in the classroom."

"I hope so; I'm not ready to die!" The girl burst into tears, and hurried off down the corridor.

Charlie continued down the corridor, and met Eric on the way into Transfiguration. They quickly took their seats. Professor McGonagall started class promptly, and neither of the boys wanted to get a detention this early in the year. Charlie took out his quill, parchment and inkbottle, ready to take notes. Professor McGonagall cleared her throat, and pointed her wand at the board with a flick of her wrist. The word "Animagus" appeared on the board.

"Can anyone tell me what that is?"

Several hands shot into the air, and Professor McGonagall called on Emmalina.

"Isn't that when you can turn yourself into an animal, Professor?"

"Very good, Miss Blakemore, five points for Gryffindor. There are rules regarding Animagus, what are they?"

Emmalina thought for a moment, the responded, "Well, you have to register if you become one. There aren't that many though, it's quite difficult to do, isn't it?"

"That is correct, Miss Blakemore. An Animagus must register with the Ministry of Magic, including what type of animal you transfigure into, and including any distinctive markings. To answer your question, Miss Blakemore, it IS very difficult."

She continued to lecture about laws and theories behind animagus transformations. Charlie was careful to take thorough notes. Professor McGonagall rarely lectured on something that she did not test on later.

Professor McGonagall walked behind her desk. A moment later, she was gone, but a cat with odd markings jumped onto the desk. Charlie did a double take, but realized quickly exactly who was sitting on the desk. He elbowed Eric, and jerked his head in the direction of the desk. Eric's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, then opened wide in recognition. Charlie stifled a laugh, as his classmates realized, one by one, that Professor McGonagall hadn't disappeared, but had become the cat. The entire class applauded and she morphed back into her human form as the bell rang to signal the end of class.

"For homework, please write 12 inches of parchment, covering the evolution of the current laws controlling Animagi."

Charlie and Eric hurried through lunch. Tonks and Peyton always made sure to position themselves at the Hufflepuff table where they could still chat with Charlie and Eric. They were all taking Care of Magical Creatures together. Charlie glanced at the Staff Table, Professor Kettleburn was a bit scary to look at, he was missing most of his fingers, and one of his feet.

Their first Care Of Magical Creatures class was a theoretical class, meeting inside the castle. They found seats together, and unpacked their bags. Charlie looked around the classroom as Professor Kettleburn limped into the classroom. Charlie hoped that they would have an opportunity to get to know the more of the students from the other Houses. He turned to pay attention when he heard the Professor clear his throat gruffly.

"Pleasure to have you all in class. We'll be getting to the practical care of creatures soon 'nough, but I won't be risking my creatures with a bunch of dunderheads who haven't cracked a book."

The class looked down at their books, most of them with the spines totally intact.

"We'll be learning about what Magical Creatures are, and perhaps, more importantly, what they are NOT. Can anyone tell me what I mean by that?"

Charlie raised his hand. Hagrid had taught him quite a lot about the magical creatures on the Hogwarts grounds, and beyond.

Professor Kettleburn nodded at him, "Your name?"

"I'm Charlie Weasley, sir. A magical creature is any beast that possesses magical properties. The difficulty lies in determining the difference between a 'being' and a 'beast'"

"Very good, Mr. Weasley. While the definition was not complete, it was well said. Please take five points for Gryffindor. Now, Mr. Weasley was correct, in that defining beast or being is difficult at best. There are creatures that look slightly human, and might be classified as 'being' but upon further study, it becomes clear that they lack the intelligence to be classified as such. There are also creatures that are clearly intelligent enough to be classified as 'beings' however choose to be classified as beasts. Centaurs are a good example of that. The current Ministry approved definition of a beast was adopted in 1811. "

Professor Kettleburn continued to lecture about the difference between beings and beasts, as well as why and how Muggles remain unaware of Magical Creatures. As the class period ended, the class was assigned a roll of parchment on the evolution of classification between being and beast.

Charlie and Eric had the rest of the afternoon off. They debated for a moment about starting their homework right away, or waiting. Waiting won out, and the boys headed to the Quidditch Pitch for a fly before supper.

The rest of the first week passed uneventfully. Potions was with the Slytherins, and Charlie anticipated the same problems as always, but he was glad that nothing happened yet. He and Eric spent as much time with The Girls as they could. Charlie found that he was making excuses to meet them in the Library. He also realized that he was really looking forward to the rest of the term.


	19. Feasts, Flying and Fun

A/N: I apologize for the long delay in getting this chapter up. I hit a wall of writer's block, and life got in the way. Thank you for sticking with me.  


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September passed quickly. October meant Quidditch, and hours on the Pitch. Naomh wasn't quite as militant as Mick was. She allowed Charlie to sit out of tactical team meetings, opting instead just to brief him on practice days. Charlie was grateful of that. He already felt like he didn't have enough hours in the day. He always felt a bit like he was running around, trying to fit homework, classes, and just being a thirteen-year-old kid all together like a puzzle. Sometimes, the pieces just didn't fit all together.

Charlie also was finding he missed his big brother. Of course, they were in the same school, in the same House even. Bill was so busy with classes and his friends, and Charlie was busy with classes, friends and Quidditch, that they never really saw each other. Charlie found that he really did miss the camaraderie he used to share with Bill. He decided that he would make an effort to do something with Bill at least once a week, if Bill was willing. Charlie saw Bill sitting across the room, and went over to talk with him.

"Hey Bill…can I talk to you for a minute?"

Bill looked up from a pile of books, and nodded at the chair next to him.

"I'm fine, I don't have too much work, and yes, I really CAN get it all done!"

"Bill, I wasn't going to ask about school. Mum couldn't stop talking about your end of year marks; I know you're perfectly able to do your work. I just wanted to say hello, and talk to you for a second. We never get to do that anymore."

"Well, hello. What did you want to talk to me about?"

Charlie felt himself blush slightly. He wanted to appear grown up, and self-sufficient, but he also missed Bill. He wavered a minute as he tried to decide how to approach what he wanted without sounding like a baby.

"I just miss hanging out with you. I know we have our own friends, and that's good, really. But…you're my brother, and I figure that no matter what happens, you're always going to be my big brother. I just thought that maybe, once in a while, we could do something together."

Bill looked at Charlie, and broke out in a big grin. "I'd like that. I miss spending time with you too. We used to have a lot of fun together, before we came to school. "

"Well, we were trying to survive the twins. Just think…next year, Percy will be here, and your last year will be the Twins first year. I don't know that the Professors will be able to handle those two."

Bill laughed, "Care to place a wager on into which House they'll be sorted?"

Charlie thought for a moment. "They are truly diabolical enough to be in Slytherin, but I don't think they're bad…they're going to wreak havoc right here, that's what I think."

Bill nodded his agreement, and then laughed again. Charlie joined in, and it felt a bit like old times. Just Bill and Charlie against the world…or at least against the younger children. They had been talking for a few minutes when Charlie noticed Bill looking over at his stack of books. Rather than keep Bill from his work, Charlie pushed his chair away from the table.

"I'll let you get back to work; I have some I have to do too. Let me know if you ever want to go for a fly or anything."

"I will, sounds like fun." It was obvious that Bill was already distracted and thinking about his work again. Charlie realized he didn't ask Bill about spending time together regularly. He guessed that making contact was a start at least.

Naomh grabbed Charlie's arm as he walked past her. "Charlie…I need you on the Pitch tomorrow. I want you to work on grabbing the Snitch as fast as you can. We've got a match against Hufflepuff in two weeks, and I hear their Seeker is lightning fast."

Charlie rolled his eyes a bit. It was obvious that Naomh had never played Seeker. She was totally unaware that 'practicing' wasn't going to make him catch the Snitch faster. It depended on so many things. He wasn't, however, going to be able to convince her of that fact, so he went along with it. If she wanted to stand on the Pitch with a stopwatch while he flew around looking for the Snitch, well…that was her problem. Charlie never really minded being on a broom.

The next day, Charlie finished classes, and hurried into jeans and a jumper. There was a chill in the air, and Charlie knew that it would be even colder in the air. He humoured Naomh, releasing the Snitch and tracking it, catching it as fast as he could. When Naomh was satisfied that Charlie was catching it as fast as he could, she let him land, and they headed back to the castle.

"Nice work up there, Charlie. I think we've got a good chance against Hufflepuff."

"I'll do the best I can, Naomh, really."

"Don't tell anyone, but I'm a bit nervous, I really want to win my first match as Captain."

"I think we will, Naomh, we've got a really good team."

They had reached the Entrance Hall, and Charlie saw that Eric was waiting for him at the door to the Great Hall. Charlie noticed a light of excitement in Eric's eye, and hurried over to him, curious to find out why.

"Charlie…you'll never guess what was posted when you were practicing."

"So tell me, if I'll never guess."

"Hogsmeade Weekend is coming up. On Halloween. We'll get to mess around in the village all day, then come back for the Halloween Feast. What could be better?"

"We'll have to see what the Girls are doing…I'll bet they'll come with us."

They hurried into the Great Hall, and waited for Peyton and Tonks to take their seats. When the girls arrived, they took their usual spots, close to the Gryffindor table. There, they could chat with Charlie and Eric throughout the meal. Eric elbowed Charlie and mouthed, "Ask them" as soon as he caught Charlie's eye.

"Hey, Girls. It's a Hogsmeade weekend coming up…want to check out the Village with us?"

Tonks looked over her shoulder and winked at Charlie. "We would have been offended if you DIDN'T ask. Of course we'll go with you."

The week flew by, with classes, homework, and Quidditch to occupy him. Charlie still made it a point at least to talk to Bill every day, and they were planning to go for a fly together as soon as they both had a quiet minute. Friday night, at dinner, Eric began planning all the places he wanted to see.

"We'll have to go to Honeydukes; I've heard they have the best candy. The Three Broomsticks, of course, we can't miss that. Charlie, do you want to see the Shrieking Shack? I mean, it wouldn't hurt to miss that, would it? There will be other Hogsmeade Weekends."

Tonks let out a snort as she turned to look at Eric.

"Are you kidding? Are you honestly afraid of an old haunted house? I'll bet it's not really haunted, anyway."

"I'll bet it is, otherwise the stories wouldn't have started." Charlie didn't want Eric's feelings hurt.

"Well, I guess we don't need to be going, knocking on the door, our first trip to the village. There are other things to see."

Charlie saw Peyton nodding her head; obviously, she didn't want to check out the ghosts in the Shrieking Shack any more than Eric did. They finished their dinner with out much more talking. Charlie hurried back to the Common Room as soon as he finished eating. He had some homework he wanted to get started on, knowing that his weekend would be filled with fun, feasts and flying. Naomh wanted them all on the Pitch on Sunday.

Charlie woke up on Saturday morning and saw a small pile of Sickles on his bedside table. He asked Eric about them, but Eric hadn't seen who put them there. None of the other boys had seen anyone either. He stowed them in his trunk, until he could figure out whom they belonged to, and hurried to the Great Hall. Charlie finished his breakfast and headed toward the doors of the Great Hall, when Bill caught his arm.

"Hey, Charlie…anything you find on your bedside table…that belongs to you, you know. If it's on your table, it's yours."

Bill hurried off before Charlie could thank him. He turned to Eric and The Girls.

"I forgot something in the tower. You don't need to wait for me; I'll catch up to you in the Village."

Tonks rolled her eyes at him. "Not on your LIFE. We'll wait for you right here…but hurry up"

Charlie ran as fast as he could up to the tower. He grabbed a scrap of parchment and a quill and wrote a quick note of thanks to Bill. He tossed the note on Bill's bed, grabbed the Sickles, and ran back to the Entrance Hall. He caught his breath as they waited in line for Mr. Filch to collect their permission forms.

As they got closer to the village, Tonks grabbed Charlie's hand and started to pull him toward Honeydukes. Peyton and Eric weren't far behind. The smell of chocolate hit Charlie as soon as they opened the door. He wiped his chin, hoping that he wasn't actually drooling. The friends spent half the morning debating and deciding how best to spend their money.

They stopped at the Three Broomsticks for a quick bite before exploring the rest of the village. Charlie took in the sights and sounds as they found a seat in the crowded room. Charlie took his remaining money and bought four butter beers, and handed them to his friends. They discussed how to spend the afternoon. They decided that they would wander the street, stopping when their interest was piqued.

It was time to head back to the Castle, and prepare for the Halloween Feast. They brought their packages back to their dorm rooms. Charlie smiled when he saw the scrap of parchment on his pillow. It simply said, "No problem." Eric raised his eyebrow, but just nodded when Charlie shook his head. He was deeply touched that his older brother sacrificed some of his pocket money, just so that Charlie could have fun in the Village.

Charlie realized he was just sitting on his bed when Eric threw a pillow at his head. He started to change quickly and hurried after Eric. They reached the doors of the Great Hall, and pushed them open together. Halloween was one of Charlie's favourite holidays. Every year, the giant pumpkins that Hagrid used to decorate the Hall amazed him. The tables were full of sweets and other favourites. He glanced at the Firsties…filling their plates with pumpkin pasties and cauldron cakes. He was sure that Madam Pomfrey would have some young visitors tonight. Charlie glanced around the Great Hall, looking for The Girls. He caught a glimpse of Tonks, her hair a brilliant orange. He raised his hand to her, and she and Peyton hurried over to the table. The Girls hurried to their seats. Tonks grabbed a pumpkin pasty in one hand, and package of Chocolate Frogs in the other. Peyton just shook her head. They chatted about their adventures in Hogsmeade, and convinced Tonks to eat something other than sweets. Then, when they had finished eating, the friends headed for their Common Rooms for the evening.

Another week flew by. Charlie spent every spare moment doing homework or flying. Charlie had never been gladder for a Quidditch. He, and the rest of the team, reckoned that Naomh would relax when they won their first match of the year. On the other hand, she would become as militant as Mick, if they lost. Mick and Westin had both left Hogwarts, and the new Beaters fit right in. The team felt they had a good chance at winning.

They flew out onto the Pitch in the bright sunlight. Both teams played hard, but in the end, Charlie was just a touch faster. His hand closed around the Snitch, just beating the Hufflepuff Seeker. Charlie landed with the Snitch in his hand, and his teammates carried him off the Pitch. As always, after Gryffindor beat Hufflepuff, Charlie had to endure a moment of abuse by Tonks before she allowed him to go back to the tower to celebrate with his team.


	20. Christmas Holiday

a/n: Again, life has gotten in the way of writing Charlie. I'd love to say that I'll never do it again...but that would be unrealistic. Thank you for your patience, and for sticking with me.

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Just when Charlie thought that time couldn't move any faster; he woke up and realized that he would be going home for the Christmas Holiday. His days had been filled with classes, Quidditch, friends and fun. He was confident he had done well enough on his end of term exams, though he was sure his Mum would think he could do better. He also was keenly aware that he had avoided any major trouble with Nudds. Other than a few menacing looks, and banging into his table during Potions, Nudds had left Charlie alone. The only thing Charlie wasn't sure of, was whether this was a good thing, or a calm before the storm. Charlie chose to hope for the best, concerning Nudds, but always to be on his guard.

The trunks were all packed, and the students were all in the Great Hall, for breakfast before getting on the train. Charlie wrapped a few things up and stuck them in his pocket; he didn't want to be the only one without snacks. He was going to have to figure out a way to get pocket money for next term. Charlie and Eric met The Girls in the Entrance Hall, and made their way to a carriage to bring them to the station. Charlie bit his tongue against a chuckle when he saw Eric shudder slightly.

"All right, Mate?" Charlie asked with a smile.

"Fine, Charlie. Those carriages are kind of creepy, that's all."

The friends climbed into an empty carriage, and it began to move toward Hogsmeade Station. They discussed their end of term exams. Charlie was fairly confident he had done well in everything. Even his marks in Potions were good, despite the animosity between Professor Snape and the Gryffindors. Charlie was certain that his ability to brew a better than decent potion was all that kept him from receiving T's. He wondered how the other Gryffindors were fairing in Potions. He heard grumbles, of course, but you can never be sure if they are justifiable grumbles.

In short order, they arrived at the station. They located their trunks on the station floor, and moved into a compartment. Charlie and Eric stowed all the trunks overhead, and Tonks grabbed her set of Gobstones. Eric already had his ready. He had been practicing ever since Tonks had introduced him to the game. He was no longer the first one covered in stinky goo, and he actually won quite a few games. He and Tonks played for keeps, often passing the same gobstones back and forth for days.

"Care to play?" Eric looked at Charlie and Peyton.

"No thanks. It's far more entertaining to watch you two." Charlie looked at Peyton, "how long before they are both covered in goo?"

Peyton looked at the two friends sitting on the floor of the compartment. "Ten minutes, tops."

They weren't disappointed. The train was barely out of the station before a bad shot had Tonks dripping, and planning retaliation. Five minutes later, Eric was also covered, and the foursome was laughing. They went off to clean up before the snack trolley came by.

The rest of the journey to London was uneventful. Eric bemoaned the amount of homework that had been assigned over the break. Tonks complained that they couldn't use magic out of school. She told them that she had chores that she needed to do without magic. Charlie was looking forward to seeing his family, but was not looking forward to the noise.

"Maybe the twins have settled down, you know…grown up a little"

Tonks fell off the bench at that statement. They had all met the twins over the summer, and Tonks obviously couldn't believe that Peyton could think the twins could have grown up enough to stop being a couple of menaces.

"What, I'm trying to cheer Charlie up…not make it worse."

Tonks rolled her eyes. "Charlie isn't stupid, he knows the twins will be Tag Team Terrors, just like always. Better to just deal with it." She looked at Charlie, "too bad it's too cold to fly…that's usually a good escape."

Charlie laughed, "It's never too cold to fly. I'll probably go flying every day, either with the twins, or with my baby brother. He loves flying. I think he's pretty good at it too."

The train pulled into Kings Cross Station, and the boys got the girls trunks down before they got their own. Charlie hefted his trunk off the train, and started scanning the crowd of parents. He heard his family before he saw them, and hurried toward the sound of his mother's voice. He came upon them, finding them at the same time as Bill did. Charlie grabbed Ron's hand, and Bill got all the luggage on a trolley, and then swept Ginny onto his hip. Percy pushed the trolley, and they headed toward home.

As had become the norm, Bill immediately started on his homework. Charlie decided to follow the example, and pulled out his History of Magic assignment. He settled at the table with his textbook and a roll of parchment, and began reading about one of the many Goblin Rebellions. Charlie really thought it comical, and unnecessary to learn about all the various Rebellions. He wondered if Professor Binns actually read their essays. He wasn't willing to take the chance, though, and made sure that he did the best that he could.

The Holiday was filled with homework and spending time with the family. It was chaotic and loud, but somehow, Charlie was enjoying it. He and Bill had come to enjoy sharing a room. It gave them time to talk, and reconnect. Charlie was sure that they would be closer once they were back at school.

Christmas morning found them surrounded with gifts at the foot of their beds. Bill and Charlie remarked on the surprise of the Christmas Jumpers, and quickly donned them before opening the rest of their gifts. They both hurried downstairs, ready to help their mum get the smaller children ready for the trip to Auntie Muriel's. They were surprised to see their mum directing several pots to stir themselves, and a ball of dough kneading itself on the wooden board.

"Mum, why are you cooking? Aren't we going to Auntie Muriel's for Christmas Dinner?"

Their mum barely looked at them, as she waved her wand, "No, it's just far too much hassle. Auntie Muriel will be coming here for dinner. I'd much rather spend the holiday in my own home. PLEASE, will you keep the small ones occupied while I get everything ready?"

"Of course we will, Mum." Charlie looked out the window, "we'll bring them all out into the garden. It looks like it snowed over night."

Bill called all the children into the lounge, and Bill, Charlie and Percy stuffed the struggling children into warm clothes to go outdoors. They stumbled into the garden, where they set about building snowmen and snow forts. They all started throwing snowballs at one another. Ginny proved to have a fair arm, hitting her target, usually Charlie, with almost every throw. They hadn't been outside long when their father joined them, and charmed the snowmen to join in the snowball fights. Charlie and Ron teamed up against Fred and George, trying to bombard them with snowballs. Bill caught Charlie's eye and using hand signals, quickly devised a plan to help. The brothers quickly and quietly surrounded the twins and began to pummel them with snowballs. After a good laugh, they went back into The Burrow for warm drinks and a quick tidy-up before Christmas dinner.

"Bill, Charlie…please help Ginny and Ron get dressed for dinner."

Charlie nodded at his mum as he hurried the younger children up the stairs. He checked Ron's robes, making sure they were tidy before he told Ron to get dressed. Charlie was sure he was old enough to do that without getting into any trouble. He went back down the stairs to Ginny's room, chuckling at Bill trying to bully the twins into changing.

"Yelling at them isn't going to make them move any faster, you know."

"I know." Bill sighed, "It sure does make me feel better, though.

Charlie laughed again as he ducked into Ginny's room. She was sitting on the bed, glaring at the dress his mum had laid out for her.

"Just put it on, Gin Gin. It's only for dinner, and then you can put on what you want."

"Don't know why we have to dress up; it's just dinner at home."

"Just make Mum happy, Ginny…It's just so much easier that way."

Ginny pouted as she pushed Charlie out the door. "I'll wear it, but I won't like it…and you can't make me!" Ginny's voice rose to a shout as she closed her door.

Charlie sat at the table with his family, and enjoyed the dinner his mum had made. Sitting on the table was a roast goose and all the trimmings. Charlie knew there would be something delicious for pudding. Fred and George pulled the first Christmas cracker, and happily donned their hats. Fred's had a joke wand in it. He waved it, and a big paper flower appeared.

"Someday, I'll make something better that THAT come out of a cracker."

Fred winked at George and George winked back at him. George quickly read the joke that was inside his cracker. The rest of the family pulled their crackers. When dinner was over, Charlie's dad waved his wand and the dishes flew into the sink and began washing themselves. The children scattered about the house, hoping to avoid being asked to help in the clearing up.

Charlie spent quite a bit of the Christmas Holiday playing with Ron and Ginny. On nice days, he would take Ron and Ginny to the paddock. He let Ron fly his broom; while he borrowed Bill's to fly with Ginny. He liked listening to Ginny whoop with delight as he flew around the paddock. Ron was a decent flyer also. Charlie was sure he'd be getting a broom when he turned seven. Occasionally, the twins or Bill would join them. Percy didn't care to fly; he didn't even have his own broomstick. Ginny was becoming quite good on a broomstick as well. Charlie didn't let her fly alone, but he did let her steer. She talked constantly about becoming a famous Quidditch player, and Charlie had no doubt that she could do anything she set her mind to.

Though it seemed like it had just begun, the Christmas holiday was ending. Charlie had finished his homework. He'd packed his trunk, and made sure to double check everything. The family made their way to the train station. Charlie was excited. He liked being home with his family, but he was always happy to get back to school, and back to his friends. He dragged his trunk onto the train, and found the compartment that Tonks was already sitting in. He stowed both their trunks, and settled in next to her to wait for the rest of their friends.

Tonks gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "Did you have a good holiday?"

"It was nice. We had dinner at home for the first time. That was a bit odd."

"It's just Mum, Dad and me for Christmas dinner every year…just think, even your dinner, with just your family, was bigger than mine."

Charlie nodded, "true, true. It was nice not to have to hurry anywhere." He turned his head toward the compartment door, "Look, there's Eric and Barry; I'll bet Peyton isn't far behind."

Once everyone had found seats, Charlie slid the compartment door closed. He was happy to be back on his way to Hogwarts once again.


End file.
